All This Love
by Paige1292
Summary: Imagine the one you love not love you back, but instead, loves someone who doesn't love them back because the one they love loves who they're with. HueyxJazmine RileyxOC Cindyx? Caesarx? Curious? Find out and READ! xD I DON'T OWN THE BOONDOCKS!
1. The Freemans

ALL THIS LOVE

**Huey Freeman:  
**-18 years old  
-African American  
-Senior at Woodcrest  
-Intellectual, scowling nature with a big heart (though he's displayed as emotionless)  
-Revolutionary  
-Status "Black Power!"  
**Riley Freeman:  
-**Huey's little brother**  
**-16 years old  
-African American  
-Sophomore at Woodcrest  
-Tends to use the word "nigga" pretty often  
-Refers to be called 'Escobar', 'Esco' or 'Young Reezy' by people he doesn't chill with (it's a respect thing)  
-Tough exterior (sweet interior)  
-Status "We don't love them hoes."  
**Jazmine Dubois:  
**-Huey's best friend since 10 years old  
-17 years old  
-Senior at Woodcrest  
-Bi-racial (black and white)  
-Sweet, caring, kind and a bit naïve (but not as much as she used to be)  
-Still has a pretty clean vocabulary (except when she's extremely angry)  
-Status "Save the animals."  
**Cindy McPherson:  
**-Riley and Jazmine's best friend  
- 17 years old  
-Caucasian  
-Has a secret crush on Riley  
-Sophomore at Woodcrest (got held back in 2nd grade because of her rambunctious behavior)  
- Female version of Riley (kinda)  
-status "WHAT BITCHES!"  
**Michael Caesar:  
**-Huey and Cindy's best friend from Brooklyn  
-18 years old  
-Senior at Woodcrest  
-African American and Jamaican  
-generous dude, loves the ladies, intellectual (not as much as Huey though)  
-status "BROOKLYN, WHAT!"  
**Stacia Jackson**  
-Riley's girl  
-16 years old  
-Sophomore at Woodcrest  
-African American and Bajan (no accent though)  
-Girly but will cut a bitch quick!  
-Status "Classy, never Trashy."

CHAPTER 1: THE FREEMANS

"BOOOYYYY!" The angry, old black man shouted while he rested in his personal chair, watching the television.

"Which ONE Granddad!" The young man with the enormous poofy afro replied from the bathroom down the hallway.

"Whoeva ain't busy!" Granddad replied irritably. "Where's yo brother, Huey?"

"I don't know Granddad; I'm kinda busy right now." The afro boy responded loud enough for Granddad to hear.

"RILEY! RIIIIILEEEYY!"  
**************************************************************************

"Damn baby, you lookin' right to-_day_!" Riley exclaimed as he eyed his girl Stacia up and down. They'd known each other since last year, but started going out for five months now. They loved each other so much and honestly felt that they couldn't live without one another. In a few years, they'd most likely get married, but they'd worry about that in the future.

Riley invited her upstairs with him 20 minutes ago so they could study for the Biology test in two days, but it seemed as though all Riley could 'study' was her features. He was lying on his bed, facing her as she was sitting on the edge of Huey's bed, flipping pages in the book.

"Riley…" she responded and giggled, her eyes never leaving the book. "Baby, we gotta study for this test."

Riley smirked at her and scratched his scalp in the center of his head between the braids as if he was pondering. "Fuck it. We got one more day to study. We been doin this shit for the past two days. A nigga need a break around this bitch." He picked up her book from her lap and closed it up. Instead of throwing it, like he initially planned to do, he just stuffed it in her schoolbag and zipped it up.

Stacia stared at him with those grey orbs for a while and finally shook her head. "You lucky you fine, boy." She stated with a cute smile and sat next to Riley as he was sitting up "So we might as well just skip the homework from Mrs. Blevins class then, right?" Just as she seductively questioned that, a slow smile crept on Riley's lips.

"Not exactly." He slyly informed, "We could still do some…" he inched closer to her ear and kissed it, causing her to melt inside. Then he whispered in the sexiest voice, "…homework." and started slowly kissing her from her ear to her jaw line.

"Oh baby…" Stacia trailed in a soft voice, overcome with ecstasy. Riley pulled her onto his lap and continued with his sweet kisses, now placing them on her neck, as she let out soft sighs of pleasure and massaged his back muscles. Just as things were really starting to heat up,

"RILEY! RIIIIIILEEEYY!" He heard his granddad call out.

In total frustration Riley sighed and kissed Stacia tenderly. "Hold up baby. I'ma see what THIS nigga want." He informed her, as she giggled at how cute he looked when he was upset. "When I come back, you better have on that birthday suit of yours." He playfully commanded and smiled back at her before walking off.

Riley slammed the door behind him and went into the living room where his granddad was.

"Yeeah?" He asked in annoyance.

"Now look here boy, you ain't too old to get yo lil' ass beat like you used to." Granddad warned his youngest grandson, causing the boy to sigh and apologize."Now I need you to run to the store and get me that Jay-Z CD." Granddad instructed in all seriousness. Unbelievable, right?

Riley just blinked at him for a few seconds and suddenly bursted into fits of laughter. "What! Granddad, what the _hell_!"

Granddad started to grow impatient. "Now that's enough! Stop laughing at your Granddaddy!"

Just then, there was a faint flush in the background, water running and seconds later, Huey casually walked out of the bathroom. "What's so funny?"

"Nigga, I'M laughin' at Granddad. You know this nigga wants a damn Jay-Z CD?" Just the thought of Granddad bumping Jay-Z in his car caused Riley to crack up even more.

Even Huey, the famous pessimist, couldn't help but smirk a little at the idea. "Uhh, why Granddad?"

"Why the hell does there always have to be a damn reason for EVERYTHING? Maybe yo Granddaddy enjoys rap music. Maybe he wanna get down with the Jigga Man and 'do it big' as they say-"

"Granddad, nobody says that." Huey announced.

"Nigga, hush! Just gimme the damn CD by this afternoon!" He warned them.

"Which _album_, Granddad?" Huey asked, returning to his monotone manner.

"You should know! You s'posed to be wit' it in this day and age, Huey. Shame on you." Granddad responded crossing his arms and closing his eyes in mock disgust. Huey just rolled his eyes and turned around.

The boys both left Granddad in the living room watching 'The Real Housewives of Compton' and headed upstairs.

Before they entered the room, Riley blocked Huey's path and just remembered that Stacia was in there. Huey choked up that infamous eyebrow and stared at his brother. "What are you up to?" he questioned suspiciously.

Riley lowered his voice barely over a whisper. "Stacia's in there." Huey just shrugged his shoulders.

"So…?"

"SO, Nigga…" Riley started off loudly and then did his whisper-talking again. "…I don't think she's in the…umm…best condition."

Huey just looked at his brother like he was out of his mind. "Nigga, what are you talkin' about? She was just fine earlier this morn-"

"NO, NIGGA!" Riley silently exclaimed through gritted teeth. He was getting rather frustrated by his brother's lack of THIS knowledge. All the while, Huey just got annoyed by his brother's weird antics and pushed him away. "No Huey, don't!"

Huey's eyes went wide when he opened his bedroom door. _Oh my god_. He thought, as he saw a chocolate ass barely covered in red cloth and a bare back lying on Riley's bed and facing the television. Before the girl turned around, Huey closed the door to save her embarrassment (and his).

"Oh, so _that's _what you meant." Huey awkwardly stated, slightly blushing. Riley just glared at him irritably and shook his head. "Well do you need somethin in here before I beat the breaks off that pu-?"

"No, Riley. It's alright. I'll just go to the store and get Granddad's CD." As he said this, he still could not hold back that smirk and Riley snickered and went into the room. "Aiight, nigga." He replied before closing the door.

So yeah, kinda short but uhh...whatever lol. I'll make longer ones soon. Just please review! This is my first story so I'm kinda nervous of what ya'll would think. :/


	2. Him & Her

ALL THIS LOVE

I just wanna say thanks to you guys for reviewing. I really appreciate it. I was happy with at least getting one review and when two popped up I had a goofy ass smile on my face lol.

MissG2020, yeah I'm part Bajan. I never lived there though lol. My dad's from Barbados and apparently my mom's side is too (not my grandparents but, y'know...the ancestors or somethin' lol) I'm tryin' to go this summer though!

& Miss Ace, girl you _did _have me there. lol I was like "Oh lawd! She don't like my story!" lol but, turns out you do! So thanks for the review :D

Okay, lemme clear this up. I have done stories before, but it was so long ago (I'm only 18, don't judge me lol) and I used to write children stories so...yeah. I guess this isn't _exactly_ my first story, but it's my first story like this. So please just bare with me. (I'm still tryin' to learn how to post chapters up in here!)

Reader- "OKAYYY BACK TO THE STORY!"  
Me- "NO! Wait a minute. I forgot to mention something. Well in the last chapter under Cindy's description, I put that she had a crush on Caesar, but I meant to put Riley, so it's changed. Just wanted to let you know just incase you...well you'll find out soon enough! (Not in this chapter though :/ sorry.)  
Reader- "...Now, back to the story?"  
Me- *nods*

* * *

CHAPTER 2: HIM & HER

As Huey walked to the driveway to get into his old ass Mercedes 2000 car, he was surprised with a hug from the back. He didn't even have to turn around to know who it was. "What, Jazmine?" He nonchalantly 'greeted' her.

"Well hello to you too, Huey." Jazmine optimistically greeted him back. "Where are you going?"

"Out."

Jazmine rolled her eyes and smiled at his little 'game' he always liked to play. "Well duh, silly. I mean, are you going to the bookstore, grocery store, clothing store, what?" She asked, using hand gestures.

Huey inwardly smiled at her cute gestures and opened the passenger side door. "Get in." He bluntly ordered and she happily followed.

* * *

"So, why does your Granddad want _this_ CD?" Jazmine asked, on the brink of laughter.

"Who knows?" Huey shrugged and brought the CD to the register. After the two returned to the car, Jazmine just stared at Huey's head. _Oh, I just wanna play with that big, beautiful ball of hair on his head. It's so…big, and cute. Huey's the only one, (and maybe Riley), who could pull that off._

Jazmine stayed in her dreamily state, until Huey caught her eye as he drove up the road. Her glazed expression caused him to slightly blush and shift uncomfortably. "Uhh…Jazmine…"

"Yes…" She replied, still in her own world.

"Jazmine!" Huey spoke louder, but her expression hadn't changed. He suddenly drove up to a gas station, but as he approached the gas pumps, he slammed on his breaks, causing Jazmine to squeal.

"Oh great, you're awake." He said, sarcastically enthused. Jazmine just shook her head from the little shock and smiled at Huey. "Sorry Huey, I was just-"

"Thinkin' about me." Huey plainly stated before getting out of the car to pump some gas into the tank. Jazmine's eyes widened in horror as she got out with him and tried hard to cover up her blush.

"What? _No_, I was NOT thinking about YOU! I was just thinking about…something my cousin said…the other day." Jazmine lied, obviously, and Huey knew it, but he loved to mess with her like that. So he continued, as he pumped the gas.

"Uh-huh, so what did your cousin say to make you smile so much?"

Jazmine froze and tried to think up a quick answer, but miserably failed. "Uhh…it's not important." All the while Huey inwardly smirked and after it read "20.00", he removed the pump, closed the tank and settled back into the car. Jazmine walked to the passenger side and scurried inside.

"So where are we going now?" Jazmine excitedly questioned. Huey just kept his eyes on the road. After realizing that she wasn't getting an answer, she just shrugged her shoulders and pulled out her brand new iPod touch that her parents recently gave to her for her perfect attendance at school. Honestly, who gives their children gifts like _that_ for 'perfect attendance'? It would be a shock to most kids to even _receive_ anything for 'perfect attendance'.

Huey hated it. He hated how Jazmine's parents would spoil her every week. It just wasn't healthy and it made her look bad because she was constantly labeled a spoiled brat, when in truth, Jazmine was the sweetest and most generous person there is. The only _big_ thing she's ever asked for was a pony when she was between the ages of 7 and 12, but she grew out of that and by the way, who the hell raises a pony in the suburbs?

All in all, she was greatly appreciated, but she never thought about getting over half of the things her parents give to her. So to Huey, it just wasn't right. She was labeled because of her parents' off the wall obsession with pleasing their daughter. Sad, so sad.

Approaching the Freeman Residence, Jazmine was singing along (in a very nice voice by the way) to a Mariah Carey song (Alone in Love) that she was listening to on her iPod.

_Swept me away but now I'm lost in the dark  
Set me on fire, but now I'm left with a spark  
Alone you got beyond the haze and  
I'm lost inside the maze  
I guess I'm all alone in love_

_I look into your eyes  
You turn the other way  
And now I realize  
It's all a game you play  
I hold you in the night  
And wake to find you gone  
You're running out of sight  
It's so hard holding on  
All alone in love_

Whatever it was, it sounded like a nice song to Huey and Jazmine looked so beautiful with her hair in that messy bun on top of her head and the two curly tresses resting on each side of her face. She decided to wear a baby pink long sleeved button up, dark blue skinny jeans and pink baby doll shoes. Her earrings were gold, along with her necklace and her rings. The girl could dress her ass off.

Huey also noticed how she never wore fake nails. She painted them occasionally, but other than that, she really knew how to take care of them. He thought it was cute, but who the hell was he to tell her that? Huey Freeman would never admit to such a thing. That's just not how he is.

They finally pulled into the driveway. Huey was about to tell Jazmine to go home, but her parents weren't home yet and he knew how much she hated to be alone. Besides, somewhere deep down, he really wanted to be with her. So he just walked into the house, knowing she'd follow him anyways.

"Aye boy, you got my CD?" Came the lovely greeting.

"Yeah, Granddad." Huey answered and handed the black opaque bag to him.

"Hey Mr. Freeman!" Jazmine politely greeted the old man. Granddad shifted his head to the side to see Jazmine standing right behind Huey.

"Oh, hey there cutie pie! I didn't even see you behind Huey's big head." Granddad rudely stated.

Huey just scoffed. He then took notice of his Granddad standing right in front of the stairway. "Granddad, can you _please_ move. I'm tryin' to go upstairs."

"Whateva. Ya'll behave now. I know ya'll at that age where-"

"Granddad, stop! We are not gonna do anything. We're just friends." Huey reassured. Jazmine tried hard to prevent her disappointment. It's not like she wanted to sleep with him or anything but she didn't want them to do…nothing.

"Whateva, I'm goin to sleep."

"But it's 6:00."

"Point?"

"…"

"…"

"…..Well, me and Jazmine are goin' upstairs." He informed him again and gestured for Jazmine to follow him. "Come on."

"Okay, now REMEMBER what I said!" Granddad yelled up the stairs before he went to his special chair in the living room.

By now, Riley and Stacia were in their underclothes halfway under the covers. Riley had on his blue boxers and his wife beater and Stacia had on her lace bra and underwear. Riley just lay on top of her and they both gazed into each other's eyes.

"Baby, you so sexy." Riley cooed and she brought her lips up to kiss him. "You up for round two?" She sexily replied to his statement. Riley responded by sucking her bottom lip and nibbling on it a bit. Just then, they heard the door open and looked to see Huey and Jazmine standing in the doorway. Huey just shook his head and Jazmine giggled girlishly.

"YO NIGGA, WHAT THE FUCK! YOU CAN'T JUST KNOCK!" Riley argued as Stacia, not really caring who saw, kissed his collarbone, causing him to moan softly. Jazmine just giggled some more.

"Okay Riley, first off, I live here, so I can walk anywhere I please. Secondly, if you that embarrassed, why not go to her place?" Huey nonchalantly questioned. He noticed the girl pulling Riley closer to her center and he just closed his eyes. "And she has NO shame whatsoever." he muttered.

Riley and Stacia made out for a few seconds before Riley looked back to the blank expressions on the faces of Jazmine and Huey. "Nigga, WHAT! The fuck do you want? We not havin' no fuckin orgy party, nigga! Either get out or fuck YOUR bitch somewhere else!" Huey completely ignored him. Well, almost. He didn't necessarily like the fact that Riley just called Jazmine a bitch. He suddenly realized he didn't need to say anything, because Riley's statement caused Stacia to slap him in the face.

"OW! Baby what the-"

"I told you to stop addressin' women as bitches, especially Jazmine." She demanded, but in a soft voice that caused Riley to melt again and he just leant down and kissed her. He whispered his apology in her ear and he started to play with her ear as he did earlier. Huey just rolled his eyes.

"Uh, okay Riley. You been in this room for hours doing…whatever, but now I'd like to chill in my _own _room."

After a few moments, Riley sighed and turned to his brother. "Fine nigga, I'm goin' to Stacia's so we won't get interrupted by YOU two. Just give me a few minutes to get dressed."

Huey nodded and he and Jazmine exited the room. They stood in the hallway by the door, waiting.

"Huey, since when did Riley get into…you know?"

"Sex?"

"Yeah…"

"I don't know. I wanna say last year, but I'm not really sure. I don't care too much to know all of that."

Silence filled the atmosphere (although they could've sworn they heard a small moan in the room) as they waited for the lovebirds to come out. Jazmine thought about how she wanted to say what was on her mind without being too obvious. She finally spoke up.

"Uh…Huey?"

"Yes?"

"…What do you think about…you know?"

"Sex?"

"Yeah…"

At this, Huey was a little taken back. Not necessarily because of the answer that was building in his mind, but just the fact that little old Jazmine would ever ask such a question. She freaking stayed in her home for two years once she heard about the 9/11 attack. Now she just wants to know everything, which sometimes annoyed him and sometimes excited him on the inside.

And this subject did, indeed, excite him on the inside. But would he ever admit it?

He didn't really want to give her a full drawn out explanation, so he just gave her a simple statement. "Uh, well…I can't really say for sure since I'm still a virgin, but I heard it was great…y'know, minus the possibility of obtaining a STD." He responded and blushed harshly. Jazmine wasn't really looking at him so she didn't see his flushed cheeks.

"Oh…" She said, almost in a disappointing tone, which confused Huey. He turned to Jazmine and stared at her for a few seconds, the color in his cheeks going away.

"A much better question though: Why did you ask me that?" Huey asked, raising an eyebrow. Jazmine looked up at him and tried conjuring up an answer, for she really didn't know the reason why she asked that, aloud that is. _Dang it, Jazmine!_

"Mmm…I don't know. It was just a question." She answered, shrugging a bit. Huey still stared at her and realized that her face was flushed, but…naw. _He_ couldn't have been the reason she was blushing, could he?

"Umm, Huey…I-"

The bedroom door opened, interrupting Jazmine's speech, and Riley and Stacia came out smiling hard. Whatever the smell was that was inside of the room, it came whooshing into the hallway along with the door.

Huey and Jazmine held their noses.

"Yo! I _know_ ya'll didn't just do it again!" Huey silently yelled behind his hand, trying not to wake Granddad up. "Damn! How am I gonna relax in here _now_?

Riley and Stacia just giggled. "Calm down, nigga. You'll learn to love it when you actually get some! And the air freshener's in the bathroom." Stacia just giggled some more and Huey and Jazmine watched as the couple nearly sprinted down the stairs and out of the house through the front door.

* * *

So what do ya think? Please review.  
And as of now, I'm editing Chapter 3 so it'll be up here within minutes. xD  
And for future references, when I say 'i'll *blah blah blah* soon,' I don't mean I'll get it done next week or next month. I mean I'll get it done within one to three days, so ya'll shouldn't be too disappointed. :) But if you are...I'm sorry? lol  
Anyways, I'd love to hear from you so...review! xD


	3. I Dare You

Thanks again you guys! & MissG2020, girl i'ma try!

Miss Ace, aww thanks! :) Glad I don't disappoint. & if you really love Huey & Jazmine, wait til' you read this chapter! xD

Here we gooooo...

* * *

CHAPTER 3: I DARE YOU…

"Huey, stop it! You're gonna make me sneeze." Jazmine complained in her gentle voice. Huey just continued to spray the ocean-scented Febreeze air freshener in his room.

"Well get out for a second. I'm tryna make sure the smell is completely gone." He stubbornly stated. Jazmine's eyebrows furrowed and she crossed her arms.

"It's GONE Huey!" She raised her voice a little. Huey stopped spraying and stared at her.

"…" And the staring contest commenced.

After a minute or so, he finally threw the can down. "Fine, but don't expect me to do anything if the smell comes back." He warned her, but all she did was laugh.

"So, Huey…" She started as she almost accidentally sat on Riley's infested bed, but Huey pulled her arms and brought her over to his side.

"You don't wanna sit there." He assured her and picked a book from his bookcase to read. As he sat up with his back against the headboard, Jazmine smiled at him.

"Thanks." She shyly thanked him. He just nodded.

"Now, what were you saying?" Huey asked, obviously interested but his tone still remained nonchalant.

"Oh, right. Umm, I wanted to know if you…" Jazmine trailed off, suddenly feeling embarrassed to ask her question. Huey looked over at her and raised his eyebrow.

"…Yes?"

"Uhh…" she stammered and finally decided to change her question. "Uhh...I wanted to know if you could teach me some of those martial arts moves." She ended with a wide smile and Huey just looked at her, not at all convinced.

"Jazmine."

"Yeah,"

"What's your _real_ question?"

Jazmine opened her mouth as if she was about to defend herself, but she just glared at him irritably. "For your information Mr. Smarty-Pants, that WAS my question."

"Jazmine, please. You don't care about martial arts. You hate violence."

"Says who?"

"Says you." He retorted without hesitation.

Jazmine rolled her eyes and sat right next to Huey. "Fine." She huffed as she looked down at her shoes. Huey smiled at her pouty behavior. It was kinda annoying, but then again, it was kinda cute. Before she looked back in his direction, Huey's facial expression changed to his normal demeanor.

"Jazmine, just tell me what's really on your mind and we won't ever have to talk about it again." He reasoned with her. Jazmine hesitated at first, but she finally sighed and spoke her mind.

"Fine. I just wanted to know if…you thought…I mean, do you think I'm…"

"…What?" Huey egged her on.

"Pretty?" She finally asked him and turned her head away. Huey's eyes nearly bulged out of his head as she said that last word. _Pretty?_

_Do I think she's pretty? Hell yeah! She's more than pretty, she's beautiful! What the hell kind of a question is that?_

"Jazmine, what the hell!" He exclaimed in annoyance, as he stared at her neck (her head was still turned).

"SEE!" She turned around quickly, shocking Huey a bit. "_That's_ why I didn't wanna ask you." Embarrassment crept through her and she began to rise up, until Huey spoke up again.

"Jazmine, of course you're pretty. What made you ask that?" He questioned in monotone.

Jazmine's eyes went wide and she felt the heat collect in her cheeks. "Oh. Well, I don't know. I just wanted to know what you thought of me." She answered and quickly turned her head away again.

Huey wanted to laugh at her cuteness, but decided against it. "Oh, okay." He just looked down at his book and began to read.

There was a long silence in the room and the awkward vibe that Jazmine had just felt quickly shifted into boredom. She suddenly faced Huey's direction again.

"So, are we just gonna stay in here all day?" Jazmine inquired, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"That's what I was gonna do." He plainly answered as he had his eyes glued to the book.

"Huey Freeman, you have your whole life to read that book."

"You're right. In that case, my life will be over tomorrow, so if you could let me get back to reading my story, that'd be nice." He stated sarcastically. Jazmine laughed at his joke and lightly (we're talkin' baby taps) punched his arm playfully.

"I'm serious, Huey!"

"Fine, Jazmine. What do _you_ wanna do?" Huey kindly suggested; a rarity for him.

"Hmm…" She pondered, and finally came up with an idea. "How about we play a game?"

Huey gave her an inquisitive look. "What kinda game?"

Jazmine pondered some more. "Uh, truth or dare." she decided and smiled sweetly. Huey just looked at her as if she was stupid.

"Jazmine, that's stupid."

"No it's not. You gotta play it and you'll like it, I promise!" Jasmine whined a little.

"What's to like about a game called 'truth or dare'? You end up either telling secrets you don't want anyone to know, or doing somethin' stupid and I, for one, am not up to par with that." Huey said, bluntly.

Jazmine frowned.

"Huey Freeman! Stop being a spoil-sport and play!" She childishly commanded. God, that girl could be so immature sometimes. It's just a game.

With a heavy sigh, Huey marked his spot in his book and put it away. "Whatever. Let's just play and get it over with."

Jazmine squealed. "Yay!" Huey rolled his eyes. If this were anyone else, he'd waste no time in denying the game.

"So how do you play?" he asked.

"Wow, you've never played before?" Jazmine asked, shocked.

Huey glared at her. "Jazmine…"

"Okay, sorry…but all we have to do is take turns asking 'truth or dare' and you have to come up with the questions or orders that you want the person to answer to or do. And don't back out because then you'd be a punk." She instructed half-jokingly. Huey rolled his eyes again and nodded. "Okay, so I'll go first. Truth or dare?" *1*

"Truth." He simply stated.

"Okay." Jazmine poked her lips out in thought for a few seconds, and then smiled as the thought came to her. "Is it true that Riley got a 1480 on his PSAT?" She asked, much to Huey's surprise. He thought that she had to ask him questions about…him. Not his relatives.

"Uh…yeah." He responded and rolled his eyes again as Jazmine beamed.

"Oh my gosh! I knew he was smart. Why doesn't he like to show it though?" She inquired, forgetting about the game.

"I don't know. Even though he grew out of his "I'm so hard" image, he still doesn't like to let people know he got a brain up there." He answered. "And aren't we still playing that stupid game?" He rudely asked. Jazmine just rolled her eyes at him calling the game 'stupid'.

"Yes, Huey. It's your turn though." She announced.

"Right." He started. "Truth or dare?"

Jazmine hummed as if in thought. "Mmm…truth."

Huey didn't need to think about the question he was going to ask her.

"Is it true that you listen to that God awful Lady Gaga?" He asked bitterly as if mentioning the artists' name was bad for his health. Jazmine giggled at his behavior before sighing.

"She's okay. But I don't really like Pop music that much." Now _that_ statement caused Huey's eyebrow to arise.

"Really? 'Cause I thought you were into that kind of stuff."

Jazmine giggled again and rolled her eyes playfully. "Right, 'cause I'm SOOO naïve." She sarcastically remarked. At that moment, Huey didn't want to admit, as always, but he had a newfound respect for her. She knew what music was…well, she knew what music wasn't. He didn't necessarily know what type of music she listened to, but if she wasn't feeling pop music than she must be listening to something worth…well, listening to. "Alright, truth or dare?"

"Truth." Huey responded, turning his gaze away from her, looking at the window across from his bed.

"Is it true that you don't like white people?" She asked, kind of in a sad tone. Huey quickly turned to her and was met with an almost hidden sadness on her visage. Wow, now he had to choose his words carefully.

"Well, not necessarily. I'm cool with anybody who isn't ignorant. All the white people I've met just happen to be exactly that: ignorant. Except for your mom and Cindy. So it's not as if I'm against white people so much, but I'm not stupid and I know how the majority of them like to beat around the bush when the topic of 'black people' comes up." He explained, lifting Jazmine's spirits. She listened intently to everything he said and was relieved that he wasn't some racist idiot.

"Good, 'cause I don't like racist people and I just had to make sure you weren't one." She genuinely stated with a smile. Huey wanted to smile back, but…ya'll know Huey. The nigga is too damn stubborn. So he just continued on with the game.

"Okay, truth or dare?"

"Truth." She quickly responded.

"Y'know, we might as well be playin' 21 questions 'cause nobody picked a dare yet." He finally noticed. Jazmine looked at him as if she was forming an idea in her head, but Huey just returned to the game. "Okay, so-"

"Ooh! Let's play 21 questions then!" She excitedly exclaimed, interrupting Huey's question.

Huey looked annoyed at her interrupting him. "Jazmine, you the one who asked me to play this damn game and you wanna quit?" He replied, the annoyance growing a bit. Jazmine shook her head quickly and thought of another idea.

"No. I just thought of something. We can play 21 questions and whenever we want to, we can choose dare." She informed him. Huey made a face and drew his eyebrows together.

"Jazmine, that's even dumber than the truth or dare game." He responded harshly. Jazmine frowned once again.

"Huey, what's wrong with having fun? I mean, gosh, you don't wanna do _an-y-thing_!" She argued. "I mean, I come over here and try to be a good friend by hanging out with you. I talk to you, I listen to you rant and rave about the oppressive government and I try to help you with whatever I can. All I'm asking you to do is just play a sim-ple game! It's not that hard! I ask you questions and you answer them and when one of us wants a dare…WE PICK DARE! Don't be such a party po-"

"Fine, Jazmine! Damn!" He agreed with her after her annoying nagging. Jazmine just smiled in contentment. She knew he'd agree to it eventually.

"Thank you, Huey!" She thanked him and gave him a hug she knew she wouldn't receive.

Huey rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Just go ahead." He responded as she let him go.

"Nope, it's your turn." She reminded him. He shook his head at her.

"Just go. You made it up." He told her, and after a few seconds, Jazmine just shrugged. It was only fair.

"Alright," she agreed. "So uh, when you get bored, what do you like to do?" *1*

"Read." He simply stated. "What about you?" *2*

"Well, when I'm with Cindy, I like to go to the beach or the pool or just go shopping. When I'm with you and Ceez, I like to just…hang with you guys." Jazmine ended her statement with a sweet smile. "Do you have a secret talent nobody knows about?" *3*

_Oh shit._

It took all of Huey's might not to widen his eyes. Of course he was talented, and normally he wouldn't have a problem with people just _asking_ if he was, but this was Jazmine, so I mean, come on know, it was kind of nerve-wracking (did I spell it right?).

Besides, she never asked _what_ the talent was, so he just shrugged it off as if he hadn't just slightly panicked inside. "…Yeah."

Jazmine smiled at his answer. "What is it?" she asked excitedly.

"Not your turn." Huey answered, holding back a smile. Huey had to admit it, but three questions in the game, he actually kinda liked it.

"Oh, right." Jazmine said as realization hit her, which caused her to giggle.

"What kinda music do you like?" *4* Huey asked. He was really interested in her answer this time. I mean, he could've sworn that she liked that pop music, but what she said earlier surprised him, so he was dying to know. Jazmine smirked knowingly at him and began to answer his question.

"Uh, well I like, r&b and rap. I don't think hip-hop even exists anymore, but I like what hip-hop used to be." She answered this genuinely.

Now _that right there_ was the most shocking thing Huey's heard all day, and it was evident.

"What?" Jazmine sweetly questioned with yet another smile. She noticed Huey's eyes get big and his mouth slightly agape.

"…You like rap and hip-hop? I can understand r&b, but, damn. I didn't know you knew real music." Huey said in disbelief. Jazmine just laughed and rolled her eyes.

At that moment, Huey knew that Jazmine wasn't the same naive Jazmine he knew when they were ten. I mean, he's noticed her personality change significantly, but he didn't think her naivety did. That's what he gets for underestimating her. Jazmine may still be a little naïve and a little annoying, but she's intelligent, and without research or proof she will know the answer to…a lot of things. "Oh, and that question doesn't count, _Huey Freeman_." She playfully argued. Huey rolled his eyes.

"I know, _Jazmine Dubois_." He mocked.

"Okay, now back to what I wanted to ask you; what's your secret talent?" *5* Jazmine asked enthusiastically, grinning like a fool. This really caused Huey to smile a little and shake his head.

"I can sing." Huey muttered. He didn't really want to tell her that, but she was his best friend after all and the only other person who knew, other than his family, was Caesar, and Caesar's never heard him sing before.

"What?" She asked, not really comprehending what he just said.

"I said I can sing!" Huey announced a little louder. Jazmine began to get excited and she squealed. She hugged him tight and let go within a few seconds.

"AWW! Hueeeyy! Sing for me, pleeeasseee." She begged. Huey's cheeks flushed with heat.

"No." He bluntly stated.

"Pleeeaasseee, Huey! I'll never ask for another thing in my life…after this game anyways. Just please sing!"

"Jazmine, I said no. And I don't care if you ask me questions." He said, growing annoyed.

Jazmine couldn't contain her excitement because of her new-found knowledge of Huey's secret. "Aww, c'mon, Huey. We're best friends! I won't tell anyone." Jazmine genuinely promised. Huey stared at her face to look for any signs of untruth to what she was saying, but he couldn't find anything, so he just sighed.

"Fine, Jazmine." He agreed. "But after the game is over."

"Deal."

"And stop smiling so much."

Jazmine just giggled at his cute attitude.

"Okay, so do you like sports?" *6* He questioned, trying desperately to change the subject.

"Yeah, just basketball and football though. I can't watch anything else 'cause it's too boring." She explained. Huey just nodded once again.

"So…are you ever gonna get a haircut?" *7* Jazmine asked, studying his gigantic fro. Huey felt a little insulted.

"But…I thought you liked it?"

"No-no, I like it! I'm just asking!" Jazmine almost panicked.

"Calm down, Jazmine." Huey told her. "And as of right now, no."

Jazmine grinned and stared at his large fro. "Good." She said, full of relief. Huey eyed her and blushed a little bit.

He just continued. "Why are you so fascinated with clothes?" *8* Jazmine just looked at him as if he'd lost his mind. "What?" He asked, confusion written all over his face.

"Huey, I don't normally say this to guys like you, but…that's a pretty stupid question." She boldly stated. "And you're one to talk with the many clothes _you_ own." Huey chose to ignore that last statement with a roll of his eyes.

"No it's not! There're some girls who could care less about how they look." Huey argued.

"And, they look attractive to you?"

"They could."

"Huey…"

"What."

"Be quiet." Now it was Jazmine who was getting annoyed by Huey's antics. They both were surprised by their role switch, so to break the awkward tension, they just continued. Huey cleared his throat.

"You never answered." He stated lowly. Jazmine rolled her emerald eyes.

"Honestly, I don't even know the real reason. I'm just a girl. It's what we do. We like to make ourselves look good and keep up with the current trend." She answered, using her hand gestures again. Huey just took it all in and nodded.

"Cool." He responded in an uncaring tone.

"Yep. So how do you feel about girls doing that?" *9* Jazmine questioned, looking into his eyes. For a moment, Huey was trapped in hers, but he quickly turned his attention to the blank space of the wall ahead.

"I think if they buy new clothes just to impress someone then their just sad, but if they do it for themselves then I guess that's cool." Huey answered. "I just don't know how people could be so into it."

Jazmine giggled at his last statement. "Oh, Huey." Huey just shrugged as if saying 'I just don't know.'

This time, Huey thought up a serious question. "Jazmine…"

"Yeah?"

He paused before he spoke again. "What do you like about me?" *10*

Jazmine froze up. "Ah…wh-what do you mean?" _What do I like about you? Ohhh, you just don't know!_

"Y'know, what is it that makes you wanna hang with me all the time? I'm not that damn nice to you Jazmine."

"Well, what? You don't wanna be my friend?"

"No, Jazmine. That's not what I said." Huey said, slightly afraid that she would walk up and leave, but she just giggled.

"I know, just kidding. But honestly?" She asked nervously, making sure.

"Yeah."

Jazmine looked down at her shoes and played with her fingers as the nervousness returned. "Well, I-I like how…you never give up hope, even when it's lost, I…like how you stick up for me, I like how intelligent and deep you are, even when you're being a Mr. Know-It-All, and even though you know martial arts, I like how you know how to keep it under control." She stated, letting it all out. "I also like your afro. Never cut it, okay?"

Huey just stared at her in shock. After a long pause, Jazmine giggled at his expression and he finally blinked his eyes. "Uh...uh, wow."

Jazmine smiled. "Is that all you have to say Huey Freeman?"

"I mean…" Huey didn't really know what to say. He couldn't believe how sweet Jazmine was, well he could, but…damn it, she had to find the good in everyone. "…thanks Jazmine." He thanked her in a soft voice. He couldn't hide the harsh blush on his face and Jazmine smiled and hugged him sweetly. She thought he looked so cute. Normally, Huey would get irritated, but he didn't mind this time. He even hugged her back, shocking Jazmine completely. She suddenly grew over the shock and enjoyed the rare hug. After about 10 seconds, they separated and continued.

"Oh, I also forgot to mention how sweet you really are, Huey. Even though you don't show it much, I'm not stupid. I know you have an enormous heart." She added, also adding more heat to his cheeks. She just continued to smile.

"Your turn, Jazmine." He called out, wanting to change the subject now. However, he had a feeling that she would ask the same thing. _I should've seen it coming._

"Okay, what song will you sing to me after the game is over?" *11*She asked.

_What!_

Huey was sure she would ask him the same question. "Uh, I don't know. Why don't you choose one for me?"

"Huey…"

"Either that or I'm not singin'." Huey warned her. Jazmine just sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not a pushover, Huey. If you don't want to sing, that's fine." She challenged him, knowing it would confuse his mind that she was actually, well…challenging him.

"Uh…what?" Huey was startled at Jazmine's sudden character.

"You heard me, Huey Freeman. If you don't want to sing, that's fine, but I'm not gonna pick a song for you. You have to answer the question, not me." She stubbornly informed.

Huey just stared at her with wide eyes and an open mouth. Moments later, Jazmine couldn't contain it anymore and she giggled incessantly. This caused Huey to glare at her.

"Jazmine, are you messin' with me?" He asked irritably.

"No, your face, *ha-ha*, your face is just so cute, it's funny!" She accidently blurted out in-between laughter. However, Huey caught what she said and his annoying blush returned.

"Jazmine…"

"Okay, sorry. But yeah, you have to choose." She told him, coming down from her laughter. Huey rolled his eyes and began to think of a song.

He finally thought one up. "Fine, Jazmine. I'll sing This Woman's Work by Maxwell. Happy?"

Jazmine's eyes lit up when she heard this. "Oh my goodness, Huey! People usually mess up when they sing his songs! You can sing that good!"

Huey just turned his head and smirked.

"Huey, answer me!" She begged, shaking his shoulder, as if she really did anything. Huey just turned back to her with that same smirk.

"It's not your turn, Jazmine." He simply reminded her.

Jazmine opened her mouth to say something, but she closed it back, smiled and nodded. "Right."

Huey studied her facial features as she diverted her attention to her shoes once again.

"Jazmine," He started in a soft voice. "You really think I'm cute?" *12* He couldn't believe he was asking this. I mean, he was annoyed when she asked if he thought she was pretty, but he had to be a hypocrite and basically ask the same thing. Ugh!

But he wanted to know if he had heard her correctly.

This time Jazmine didn't hesitate to answer, for she was getting a little more comfortable with him. "Of course, Huey." She responded.

Huey just nodded, feeling a weird sensation in his stomach. Not sickness, but…was it…happiness?

Jazmine smiled warmly and continued.

*BREAK! Now, if ya'll thought Huey was embarrassed before, wait for the next question. BREAK ENDED!*

"So Huey, uhh…I told you about yourself, so…what do you like about me?" *13* She finally asked.

"Wh-what do I like about _you_?" He repeated, as if he didn't catch it the first time.

"Yep." She replied, smiling.

_Damn it! I knew she'd ask that at SOME point. *sigh* Well, here goes nothin'._

Slowly, Huey expressed his thoughts to Jazmine. "Well…I like how you always console me when I'm down, and even though you're naive sometimes, you're still smart, so I like that too. And even though you annoy me at times, your optimism is something to look forward to because…I don't know. Sometimes it's a relief to not have to think about the bad things this world consists of. I also like how you listen to me, even when other people could care less and…and…" He began to trail off as he met face to face with Jazmine. They both stared into each other's eyes, inching closer and closer until…

"Jazmine…" he whispered, still staring into her eyes.

"Mm hmm?" She answered in a heavenly voice.

"Are we still playin' the game?" He asked, trying to do anything to get out of this awkward, yet satisfying position. Jazmine finally snapped out of it and blinked uncontrollably.

"Jazmine, you okay?" Huey asked, full of concern.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. I'm just, shocked. I can't believe we almost…" Jazmine stated and let out a nervous giggle.

"Yeah…I know." He silently replied. Both of them turned away from each other, blushing. Huey scratched his fro while Jazmine slowly rubbed her arm up and down. There was yet another silence in the room and both were waiting on the other to say something. Since it was Huey's turn, he decided to speak up first.

"Uhh…okay." He said, turning his head halfway in Jazmine's direction. Jazmine did the same. "Jazmine, who do you confide in the most?" *14*

"Wait a minute, what were you gonna say right before we-" She finally asked.

"Oh yeah. I was gonna say I liked your smile." Huey said quickly, trying to get her to answer his question. Jazmine smiled wide and blushed, looking down at her shoes again.

"Thanks, Huey." She sweetly responded to him before answering. "But you already know the answer to that question though." She said, and winked at him. Huey's eyes grew a little and he smirked again.

"Is Jazmine Dubois flirtin' with me?" He teased. Jazmine giggled and turned her head away again.

"Jazmine, look at me." He ordered, which caused Jazmine to giggle some more before turning around to face him. "Answer me."

Jazmine, still in her giggly state, rolled her eyes. "Okay…you, Huey. I mean of course I confide in my parents, but they're my parents, they don't count." Huey nodded. He kind of figured that, but he didn't expect her to actually admit it. Once again, that's what he gets for underestimating her. "Umm…have you ever thought about having kids? Y'know…in the future, or maybe…in the not-so-distant future?" *15* She asked, slowly, knowing that she just brought more of an awkward vibe into the room, and regretting it.

Huey's cheeks were so hot by now that one would think he had a fever coming on. This had to be the most uncomfortable question of the entire game. Kids? I mean, he never thought about it, but the girl that he always liked, sitting right next to him, asking such a question was just so…weird! He shifted uncomfortably on his bed trying not to make his nervousness obvious. "Uh, I guess." He answered, awkwardly. "So, you know how to cook?" *16* He asked her, changing the mood.

Jazmine smiled sweetly and rolled her eyes. "Listen to yourself. 'Can I cook?' I'm the one who does most of the cooking." She said and playfully pushed Huey. "Silly."

Huey playfully pushed her back and smiled. "Well, I didn't know that."

"Uh-oh! Huey was wrong this time…and the world didn't explode!" Jazmine joked. Huey rolled his eyes and Jazmine continued her giggling.

"Aww, Huey I was just playiiinngg." Jazmine said, still laughing and hugged him for a few seconds.

"Aiight, Jazmine. You gettin' a little more touchy than usual." Huey complained.

"Well, Huey Freeman, you weren't saying that when we almost kissed now did you?" Jazmine retorted, with a sneaky smile. Huey was about to say something, but he didn't have a comeback.

"Shut up." He plainly ordered, causing Jazmine to roll over in fits of laughter. She laughed so uncontrollably, that…you're not going to believe this, but…_Huey_ even chuckled a little. "You're so dumb." He playfully said and pushed her gently. They were unnoticeably getting more and more comfortable with one another.

After she collected herself she finally came up with a question. "Okay, okay…have you ever thought about getting a tattoo?" *17*

Huey lifted both of his eyebrows and looked towards the ceiling in thought. "Umm…yeah, once."

With that, Jazmine smiled and got loud. "REALLY!"

"Shhh!" Huey quickly shushed her. "Yeah, really."

"Wow, Huey!" She asked.

"Jazmine,"

"Oh right, heh-heh, sorry."

"Well, if you could have any super power, what would it be? Kinda cliché, I know." *18 He knew she'd get all giddy and goofy over stuff like this, and he thought it was so cute.

Jazmine's face brightened and she put one finger on her chin in thought. Huey admired her facial features as she tried conjuring up an answer. "Okay, I would want telekinesis or teleportation!" She joyfully exclaimed.

"Hmm." Huey hummed.

"What?" Jazmine softly asked with insecurity.

"…What, you don't wanna fly, or have laser beams or some stupid shit like that?" Huey asked with that infamous eyebrow.

"What? No! Why would I want to fly if I can just teleport wherever I want?" She said, laughing at his facial expression. "My goodness, Huey. Stop underestimating me." She half-joked. Huey just nodded.

"You're right. It's just funny 'cause I thought you of all people would like to fly." He said with a shrug. "But who really cares? It's not gonna happen." Jazmine agreed with a nod and stood up off of the bed.

"Where are _you_ going?" Huey asked a little too quickly. Jazmine just looked at him for a second and smiled.

"I'm just stretching, Huey Freeman. I'm not going anywhere." She promised him."But yeah, what made you want to get a tattoo?" *19* She asked, while she stretched. Huey stared at her frame as she twisted her body and couldn't help but get a little turned on. She was just right. She was thin, but not bony. She had thick hips and a small waist. Her chest wasn't that big, but it wasn't that small either. Her backside definitely wasn't a disappointment. Huey noticed all of these things, but tried hard to ignore it.

And it was hard as _hell_!

When she reached for the ceiling, he saw her shirt go above her flat torso and directed his attention to her belly button when he noticed something sparkling.

_Is that a…belly ring? Damn girl._

She stopped stretching and sat next to Huey again, who was in a daze by this point. "Huey did you hear me?" She asked him, catching him off guard. She noticed how silent he was and had to wonder if he was alright.

"Oh…what?" Huey asked. Jazmine playfully rolled her eyes.

"I_ said_, what made you want to get a tattoo?" She repeated.

"Oh. Well it was around the time when we were 16. I was thinkin' about my parents and I wanted their names on either side of my arms. But then I thought, 'what do I need markings on my body to remember my parents?' so I decided not to get one." He informed her. She could've sworn there was sadness in his voice at the mention of his parents, but she knew he didn't want to talk about it, so she nodded and changed the subject.

"Oh.".

"But anyways…" Huey began, wanting to change the subject as much as did. "So, ahh…Jazmine…"

"…Yeah?" She replied.

"Since when did you think you could hide that belly ring of yours?" *20* He boldly questioned. Jazmine's eyes went wide and she but her hand over her clothed stomach. Huey smiled at her actions and shook his head. "That doesn't stop you from answering the question." He sarcastically remarked.

"Shut uupp." She replied in a playful tone. "For your information, Huey, my parents know."

"I wasn't talkin' about them." He bluntly responded and smirked at her again.

She felt her cheeks flush with heat and she tried to cover them, but Huey saw it all so there was really no use. "Ahh…HEY! How'd you know I had a belly ring? Who told you?" She asked, flipping the question around.

Huey sighed.

"Jazmine, I just saw it when you were stretching. You mean to tell me you didn't feel anything when your shirt came up?" He asked and rose up one of his eyebrows. Jazmine was pretty sure that her face looked as red as a McIntosh apple by now.

"Huey! Stop it. You're embarrassing me." She blurted out and Huey laughed a little bit at her cuteness.

"Jazmine, just answer me."

"Well, what do you want me to say?" She said, confused at how she was going to answer this question.

"I just wanna know when you got it, really." He said, changing the question a bit.

"Fine. I got it a month ago when me and Cindy went to the mall, but don't tell anybody." She told him, almost panicking. Huey just rolled his eyes.

"Jazmine, the only other friend I'd tell is Ceez and he doesn't care so there's no point in tellin' him." He honestly explained. Jazmine just smiled and shrugged.

"LAST QUESTION!" She exclaimed enthusiastically, causing Huey to roll his eyes. "And Huey, tell the truth."

"Haven't I been doin' that the whole time?" He smartly retorted. She just ignored his comment.

"Well anyways, why are you so interested in my belly ring, Huey Freeman?" *21* She asked in a sweet voice.

At first Huey was gonna ignore the question, but it wouldn't be fair. So he said exactly what came to mind. Besides, he always got a kick out of making her blush.

"I don't know…I just like it. It's…sexy." He stated and ended his statement with a shrug.

Jazmine's eyes went wide as saucers. "Wh-what?" she stammered.

Huey smiled at her reaction to his description. "I _said_ it's sexy, Jazmine."

Jazmine smiled and looked down at her belly, covered with her shirt. She put her hand there as if she was pregnant and looked in Huey's direction. "Wow Huey. I never thought you'd say anything like that about me." She said in a soft, heavenly voice. Huey turned to her and smirked.

"And this is the happiest I've ever seen you." She added. If this was the first or second time he's smiled in front of her, he'd hide it in a jiffy, but this had to be the umpteenth time today, so he didn't care anymore. They looked into each other's eyes once again, but this time, Jazmine turned away, feeling flushed with fever, but Huey wasn't having that.

_Nuh uh, not this time._

Huey was not about to let her get away this time. He didn't know what got into him, but he couldn't contain himself any longer.

"Jazmine…" Huey called her and she turned around.

"Yeah, Huey?" She asked in a soft tone. The two looked into each other's eyes once again, and at that moment, Jazmine knew she couldn't turn away.

"I dare you to kiss me." He surprisingly dared her in a low voice. And just like that, Jazmine connected her lips with Huey's. She was shocked that she was kissing Huey, the boy who supposedly paid her no attention, and he just ordered her to do so. She felt like she was flying and she finally closed her eyes to fully enjoy it. The kiss lasted for about ten seconds, and then they both pulled away slowly, still staring into each others' eyes. After a few seconds, Huey continued staring at Jazmine, but then Jazmine stared at her hands, smiling hard.

"Hu-Huey…what was that for?" She bashfully asked, still looking at her hands, as if she didn't know.

Huey continued staring at her and smiled again. "I don't know. Maybe I like you." He teased, and Jazmine's head shot up.

"You like me?" she asked. Huey rolled his eyes.

"Well, we did just kiss." He admitted without hesitation. Jazmine smiled happily.

"Well, I like you too, Huey." She confessed. Huey rolled his eyes again, which caused Jazmine to laugh.

"I _know_, Jazmine." He said softly, before leaning over to her and kissing her again, but longer this time. After they pulled away, Jazmine couldn't contain that smile of hers.

"Wow, Huey." Jazmine commented, and suddenly realized something; they had a deal! "Oh and don't think I forgot about you singing the Maxwell song." Huey sighed and rolled his eyes once again.

"Fine, since I'm not one to fuck people over." He vulgarly stated, causing Jazmine to gasp and giggle.

"HUEY!"

"What?"

"Am I gonna have to wash your mouth out with soap?" She asked him, still giggling.

"Hey, I'm not as bad as Riley." He responded, smirking a little.

"That's true, but still. You're pretty bad yourself." She said, eyeing him up and down. Huey noticed her gaze on him and another small smirk grew on his visage.

"Jazmine, what are you insinuating?" Huey teased.

"What do you mean?" She responded, playing dumb.

"You know what I mean."

They both smiled at each other and Jazmine finally answered. "I'm just saying, you're not off the hook. If you curse like that again I'll beat you up." She playfully insisted, raising a fist.

"You can't take me."

"Wanna bet?"

"Why bother?"

She just continued smiling. "Okay, keep playing then. And you better start singing, buddy."

_Damn it. I was hopin' she'd forget. Oh well, here it goes._

Huey sighed.

"Aiight Jazmine, just don't look at me til' I'm done." He instructed. Jazmine agreed and turned her direction to Riley's side of the room.

And so he began.

I know you've got a little life in you left  
I know you've got a lot of strength left  
I know you've got a little life in you yet  
I know you've got a lot of strength left

I should be crying but I just can't let it show  
I should be hoping but I can't stop thinking  
All the things we should've said that I never said  
All the things we should have done that we never did  
All the things we should have given but I didn't

Oh darling make it go  
Make it go away

Huey didn't sing as high as Maxwell, but he did sing it beautifully.

After he finished, Jazmine turned to him with tears in her eyes and a wide smile.

He sighed at the sight. _Why did she have to do that?_

"Oh Huey, that was beautiful." She complimented and hugged him. Huey hugged her back, smirked down at her and kissed her forehead. She then pulled away and wiped her tears from her eyes.

"Thanks Jazmine. Just don't tell nobody, or it's your ass." He playfully teased.

"Hmm, I think I'll be lookin' forward to that." She responded with a playful smirk, causing Huey's jaw to drop.

"Jazmine Dubois! You an undercover freak?" He exclaimed silently and Jazmine just laughed..

"What gave you that idea?" She slyly questioned in a soft voice that made a shiver go up Huey's back.

"Girl, don't play."

Jazmine giggled again at his flushed and shocked expression. "Sorry, but I can't help it. You're so cute when you get all flustered." She informed him, causing him to blush again.

"Oh…be quiet." He playfully responded and kissed her again, this time even more passionate than the last passionate kiss. They were so into it that once they pulled away, they slightly gasped for air. The both of them stared at each other with smirks on their faces.

"Y'know," She started, "we could turn into Riley and Stacia if we keep this up." Jazmine teased, tracing a finger along his jaw line.

Huey's smirk got a bit wider and had a glint in his eyes that caused Jazmine to damn near pass out. "Jazmine?"

"Yeah?" she dreamily muttered.

"Come here." He ordered in a soft voice. She rolled over on top of him and the two started making out.

Neither one of them was ready for sex, so…yeah, they didn't do that, but they just kissed each other a few times. After a few moments, they began to make out and booyyy was it getting hot up in there. Just as Jazmine slowly grinded against Huey, which caused him to sigh a little, Riley and Stacia entered the room with matching smiles on their faces.

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Oh yeah, i forgot to mention, but in the first chapter in Cindy's description, I meant to put that she had a crush on RILEY not CAESAR. Idk where that came from lol. But yeah, just so you guys won't get confused when...nevermind, you'll find out soon enough! I'm currently editing chapter 4, so you won't have to wait too long. And btw, when I say I'll do somethin' soon, I don't mean I'll do it next week, next month or next year, I mean I'll have it done within a day or two. I don't slack off too often, so you won't be disappointed! :) and if I do disappoint...sorry? lol. but please review!


	4. Caught, Nigga!

This chapter is hella short compared to the last one, but I hope you like it. Working on Ch. 5 now!

& Ya'll know I gotta give shoutouts though. I may not have many reviewers, but that's okay. They'll come around. I'm just happy that I have reviews, and positive ones at that! So thanks to MissG2020, Miss Ace Thank You & the recent reviewer, jayjai107!

Thanks guys! I 'preciate it *pounds chest twice and chucks deuces* (such a dork lol)

So here ya go! Chapter 4

_"Let's get it shawty!" - Jeezy!_

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CHAPTER 4: CAUGHT, NIGGA!

"What the fuck!" Riley exclaimed silently, causing Huey and Jazmine to look in his direction with their lips still stuck together. With a soft smack, their lips disconnected. Riley couldn't believe what he saw and he plastered an enormous grin on his face. "Damn nigga, when I told you to fuck yo girl, I ain't actually think you was gon' do it." He stated, causing his girl to giggle.

"Damn it, Riley." Huey huffed as Jazmine rose up with red cheeks.

"Aye nigga, don't get mad at me. You did it." Riley responded, laughing. "You was gettin' it in, won't you?"

"We didn't do anything, Riley. We just kissed." Huey informed his younger sibling, angrily.

"_And_ nigga, you sayin' that shit like you did it before. This shit is hilarious, nigga." Riley replied in fits of laughter as Stacia tried hard not to do so, but she failed miserably. Huey glared at them as Jazmine hopped off of the bed.

"Shut up." Huey said and he and Jazmine left the room. From behind the closed bedroom door, Huey could hear Riley yell 'Caught, Nigga!' followed by a few snickers, but he ignored it and continued walking. Jazmine just followed him and as he headed for the front door, she couldn't help but ask him where they were going.

"Where are we going?" she questioned, while they reached the first floor. Huey looked back at her and smirked for what seemed like the billionth time that day.

"The hill." He responded as he turned the door knob.

The hill, that oh-so-familiar hill.

The place where the two neighbors first met at the age of 10.

The place where the two casually became friends.

The place where the two casually became _best _friends.

The place where the casual best friends met two other neighbors.

The place where the other two neighbors hadn't been since they met the casual best friends.

The place where the casual best friends would meet up to talk about whatever it was that was on their minds.

As of today, there was no talking. Not that it wasn't allowed, but there was no need to. The two casual best friends, or couple, were sitting against the tree.

Jazmine had her head on Huey's chest as Huey wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Both of them were looking onward in a very comfortable silence, so comfortable in fact, that within an hour, Jazmine let out a peaceful yawn, causing Huey to look down at her.

"Tired?" He asked. Jazmine looked at him and smiled. Then she lifted her head off of his chest, causing his arms to fall off of her shoulders, and stood up to stretch.

"A little, but only because of the comfort. I have to be doing something or be around noise in order for me to stay awake." She announced, bending down to touch the grass. Huey eyed her fluid body movements. He loved how flexible she was and when she twisted her upper body from left to right as she did earlier, he couldn't keep his eyes off of her physique. Her frame was so damn _slender, _yet she had all the curves in ALL the right places. What made matters worse, or better, was that damn belly ring of hers. Huey could barely keep his mind off of it since the first time he'd seen it. Something about belly ring piercings was just straight up _sexy_, and he didn't understand why, but it had to be one of his biggest turn ons.

Annnndd there it is.

Just as he's trying to divert his attention away from his fascination with belly piercings, Jazmine stretches for the sky and her cute top just so happens to rise up over her belly button again. Instantly, Huey was in a daze as he stared at the silver object with the light pink diamond in the middle of her belly. Something about it made his eyes gravitate towards it and he involuntarily licked his lips, ever so slowly.

Unfortunately, for his sake, Jazmine caught him staring at her stomach and once she looked down, she realized what he was staring at and smirked. She could've interrupted his daze by pulling her shirt down, clearing her throat, or by simply calling his name, but she was enjoying this too much, so she continued to reach for the sky for a few seconds.

Huey was ogling her absentmindedly and he didn't realize she had even acknowledged the fact that she had caught on to what he was looking at. He wasn't even thinking at this point.

After a few seconds, Jazmine couldn't hold back anymore and she suddenly giggled, causing Huey to snap out of it. He then realized that she knew what he was staring at and his cheeks filled up with heat. Jazmine continued to laugh as she pulled her shirt over her torso and bent down to place a kiss on Huey's forehead.

_Caught, Nigga!_ Riley's words seemed to pop into his head at that very moment.

She finally stopped laughing, but her smirk never left.

"So," She began, slyly. "Huey Freeman can't contain his excitement for belly piercings, I see." Jazmine couldn't help herself. It was just too funny. She'd never seen Huey in _that_ much of a daze before, and the fact that it was _her_ he was ogling made the situation all the more better.

Huey shrugged and smirked, regardless of the red glow on his cheeks. "Sorry, I can't help it. I mean, what do you expect? That damn sparkly thing on your stomach is…_distracting._" Jazmine just smiled and rolled her eyes at his choice of words. She then lifted her shirt above her navel, just to tease him and Huey's eyes had that glint in it that she'd seen earlier. She giggled and pulled her shirt down again.

"Good lord, Huey. You really _can't_ help yourself." She observed and started to sit next to him again, but he rose up and walked in front of her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Jazmine stared into his eyes, smiling sweetly as Huey stared back with a smirk.

"If you don't stop it." He playfully warned her in a low tone. Jazmine shook her head and closed her eyes.

"Do you even know _why_ you're shakin' your head?" he asked with a chocked up eyebrow. Jazmine smiled and giggled a little before shaking her head again.

"No, but I like to tease you." She answered with a voice as soft as…whatever, I can't think of anything, okay! "So what _are_ you telling me to stop for? I'm not the one about to kiss my girl." She playfully inquired.

Huey rolled his eyes before kissing her full on the lips. Within seconds he backed his head away as she did the same. "Happy?"

"Oh shut up and tell me what you're talking about." Jazmine demanded, still smiling and blushing.

"Just stop being so…" Huey started but once he saw her absentmindedly lick her lips, his heart sped up ten times, or at least…that's how it seemed.

"…What?" She asked, full of anticipation.

His mind seemed to be working now, but his tone didn't change from that low, soft octave.

"…Sexy." He finally answered and let out a sigh as she licked her lips again. Jazmine didn't know even know why he'd done so, so she just thought he was still on the belly piercing thing. One thing she _did_ know was that Huey was not the same Huey she'd met when they were ten. Not _this_ Huey. Well, who was she kidding? Huey didn't change _that_ much. His angry scowl was still evident on a daily basis, he still complained about the complications of the world, he still blamed the white man for everything, he was still blunt and he was still mature beyond his years. The only difference now was that, well, wasn't it obvious? He'd grown to like Jazmine a _lot_ more than a friend and vice versa. So what if he'd changed? Even if he hadn't, Jazmine still would've liked him the way he was, just because it was Huey.

Jazmine poked her lips out and brought an index finger to her cheek, as if in thought. "Hmm…I don't know. Genetics, I guess." She smartly retorted with a smirk. Huey rolled his eyes and glanced at his watch on his arm.

_8:07_

"Well, it's almost 8:10. What you wanna do?" Huey asked, removing his arms from her waist and wrapping one around her shoulder as they started walking down the hill. Jazmine wrapped one of her arms around his lower back.

"Well, I can't stay out too long…well, I can, but you know the Pep Rally's tomorrow, so I need to get ready." She explained to her boyfriend (aye, they never said anything, but isn't it obvious?). Huey let out a disappointed sigh, but of course he understood. Jazmine was on the dance team at Wuncler High School and being that she was a senior, and a pretty good dancer, she was one of dance team leaders along with Stacia, who was merely a sophomore but was an ecstatic dancer. The dance team would meet at Jazmine's house at 9:10, just to be prepared for the big day tomorrow.

"Right. So, you tryna go home now?" He asked, slightly worried. Jazmine shook her head.

"No, not yet. We can go to your house again." She responded and kissed him on the cheek. Huey just nodded.

They continued to walk with his arm around her shoulders and her arm around his waist down the sidewalk and were met by two familiar unexpected figures: Cindy and Caesar.

_Great. Just great._

To make matters worse, the two were smiling hard, staring at the new couple. They just stood there waiting for the couple to move closer. Huey rolled his eyes once he looked at their faces and Jazmine smiled sheepishly with red cheeks.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Caesar knowingly questioned. Cindy laughed her wild laughter and shook her head.

"Mane, I _knew_ you niggas was gon' hook up soona o' lata. I'm just mad it took so damn long!" Cindy exclaimed, coming down from her laughter.

"I know right?" Caesar agreed, still grinning like a goofball. Jazmine giggled and Huey sighed.

"Shut up." He simply retorted and Caesar and Cindy's eyes grew wide with mock surprise.

"Ooooh shiiiitt! He didn't deny it! He didn't deny! He didn't deny it! He didn't deny!" Caesar somehow came up with this song out of nowhere, causing Cindy to dance, Jazmine to crack up and Huey to shake his head.

"Ya'll niggas dumb." Huey replied, finally letting go of Jazmine as she did the same to him.

"Aye nigga, you know how we do." Cindy responded, still dancing, although Caesar stopped singing. Everyone looked at her as if she was crazy until she looked at all of them. "What?"

"Nigga, stop dancing!" Caesar playfully shouted, causing the girls to laugh and Huey to snort.

"Aw c'mon Ceez, I'm just goofin'!"

"Not…while I'm around." Caesar stated, imitating the late Grandmaster Bushido Brown and even Huey had to laugh at that one. Cindy playfully pouted.

"You always makin' him laugh. I wanna tryyyy." She playfully pleaded. Caesar shook his head, dreads flying everywhere and smiled brightly.

"Naw man, only I can obtain such an immense power." He joked again in a mock Hercules-like voice, causing the three to crack up. Caesar was quite the comedian. He always underestimated himself, but everyone knew that he had a great potential to become a hilarious comedian. Dude had intelligence, and a humorous personality. He could make the dumb and the intellectual crack up with a simple sentence. If that's not what you would call a comedic genius, then you must be out of your mind. He loved to rap though. He believed it was his true calling.

"Ceez, you stupid." Huey said, coming down from his laughter along with the girls. "Me and Jaz are goin' to my place, ya'll comin'?" He asked and immediately rolled his eyes when he saw the knowing grins appear on his friends' faces. "Alright, we get it, 'Huey got a girl!' blah, blah, blah. Are you comin' or not?" His famous impatient tone returned. Cindy shook her head.

"Sorry bruh, we got practice tonight. That's where we was headed 'til we seen ya'll." Caesar answered basically what Cindy was about to say. It was then that the couple just realized that their friends had on ballin' shorts and the high school basketball jerseys. Cindy had on a white tee under hers whereas Caesar just had on the jersey, his muscles slightly rippling through the damn thing.

"Yeah. Last time we ditched 'cause of you niggas, coach went ham on us." Cindy added with a silly grin. At the same time, Huey and Jazmine chocked up their eyebrows, causing the other friends to laugh a little bit. "Jazzy, I'ma need for you not to be doin' that. You startin' to look just like Huey."

"Whatever." She simply replied with a small smile. "But anyways," she continued, rolling her eyes, "we didn't make you guys come with us."

"And we sure as hell ain't doin' it now." Huey muttered in a low voice, but everyone heard him. "And why do ya'll have practice so late?"

Both friends just shrugged. "Coach always doin' stupid shit. It's not like we got a routine for the Pep Rally tomorrow or somethin'. Our game is on Saturday." Caesar answered him. "But we gotta bounce. We was headed that way, until we bumped into you guys." He ended, with another smirk. Huey was seriously about to go off, but he held it in. By the way, Caesar knew his best friend was irritated, so he left it alone.

"Aiight, I'll see ya'll later." He added, turning and waving to them as they waved back. Cindy followed, but not before saying goodbye to the cute couple.

"Bye Huey!"

"Bye."

"Bye Jazzy!"

"Bye Cindy!"

"Bye Caesar!"

"Cindy, I'm goin' with you."

"…Oh." She laughed. "Got a little excited there." Caesar shook his head and laughed at his friend. As they started walking the opposite way, Cindy forgot something. She turned around.

"Huey, tell Riley to bring his ass and stop fuckin'! Coach gon' flip if he don't show up!" She shouted half-joking. Huey turned around and nodded, before walking off with Jazmine.

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Told you it wasn't long, lol but no worries. Next chapter will be longer. But please review! Thanks in advance!


	5. Boys Talk

"What up dawgg!" - Riley Freeman ( _from The Boondocks Season 2: Shinin'_)

I just felt like puttin' that quote up there lol. But thanks guys! Ya'll know I gotta do the shoutouts, so thanks MissG2020 & jayjai107! (Miss Ace, where you at girl?)

This chapter ends this LONG ass day! (Yeah, it's still day one lol.) So enjoyy!

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CHAPTER 5: BOYS TALK

_I'm a hustler baby  
I just want you to know  
It ain't where I been  
But where I'm 'bout to go  
Now I JUST WANNA LOVE YA  
But be who I am  
And with all this cash  
You'll forget you're man_

_Now give it to me  
Gimme that funk, that sweet, that nasty, that gushy stuff  
But don't bullshit me  
Gimme that funk, that sweet, that nasty, that gushy stuff_

Granddad was in his room getting dressed and blasting to his new Jay-Z CD his oldest grandson just bought him. Okay, so the album wasn't new, but Huey actually did him a favor. The Blueprint III wasn't that good. So he gave Granddad Jay-Z's The Blueprint album instead.

Granddad had a date tonight and he had to leave the house in proximately thirty minutes. He was pretty sure that this woman wasn't bat shit crazy like his past dates. He made sure to get a background check on her with the help of Gin Rummy and Ed Wuncler the third and their connects to the government, and he made sure she wasn't bullshitting about her looks this time. Skype had to be the best thing the internet had ever come up with.

Wondering why Granddad wanted a Jay-Z CD, huh? Neither of the grandchildren could figure it out!

Truth is, Granddad just wanted to impress the little cutie pie that he would soon meet up with. The two were going to a Jay-Z concert and how would it look if he took his date to a concert without knowing a damn thing? Besides, Granddad thought Jay-Z was the only rap artist who made sense.

Clearly he must've shut the world out between the '80s & the '90s.

On the other side of the door, or the other side of the hallway into the boys' room, Huey could hear the music. Recently finding out about Jay-Z's evil ways in the music industry, Huey despised him, but he couldn't deny that his music was _still_ the shit. Unknowingly, he bobbed his head and rapped along with the song.

(Huey's in bold)

_When the Remi's in the system, ain't no tellin'  
Will I fuck 'em will I diss 'em, that's what they be yellin'  
__**I'm a pimp by blood**__, not relation  
__**Ya'll be chasin', I replace them, huh?**__  
Drunk off Crist', mami on E  
__**Can't keep her little model hands off me**__  
__**Both in the club, high, singin' off key**__  
__**'And I wish I never met her at all…"**__  
It gets better, __**ordered another round**__  
__**Its, about, to go, down**__  
Got six model chicks, six bottles of Crist  
Four Belvederes, got weed everywhere  
__**What do you say**__, me, you, and your Chloe glasses  
__**Go somewhere private where we can discuss fashion  
Like, Prada blouse, Gucci bra**__  
__**Filth marked jeans, take that off**_

_**Give it to me  
**__Gimme that funk, that sweet, that nasty, that gushy stuff  
__**But don't bullshit me  
**__Gimme that funk, that sweet, that nasty, that gushy stuff  
__**Give it to me  
**__Gimme that funk, that sweet, that nasty, that gushy stuff  
__**But don't bullshit me  
**__Mama, gimme that funk, that sweet that nasty that gushy stuff_

He was so into it that he didn't even realize his brother walking through the door until he heard his gym bag hit the floor. He jumped a little bit at the sudden interruption, but he shrugged and continued bobbing his head as Riley collapsed on his bed and looked up to the ceiling.

To say that Riley was exhausted was an understatement. Coach was on his ass today, all because he was five minutes late. FIVE freaking MINUTES! He swore up and down Coach was after him and his boys. That damn Tyree Hall was always late and the most he got was one lap around the gym. Whenever Riley was late he had to do fifty pushups and run two and a half laps. It infuriated Riley how the Coach picked favorites all the time. Damn, what was wrong with Riley? He was obviously one of the best ballers of the entire school, so he couldn't see what the Coach had against him.

_That gay ass nigga._ He angrily thought as he recalled what had just happened and let out a low, irritated grunt. Huey looked at him and raised a brow, ending his singing/rapping along with the song.

"What's up with you?" He asked out of curiosity. Riley didn't respond for a few seconds, but he finally let out an exasperated sigh, closing his eyes.

"The gay ass nigga still playin' favorites and it's pissin' me the fuck off." He replied in a stone cold, low voice. Huey knew his brother didn't direct that tone towards him, obviously because of what the younger brother had just said, so he just nodded and listened intently. Unlike their relationship with each other as kids, the two brothers actually got along pretty much all of the time. Of course they had their moments of heated arguments, but they're brothers, it's their job. Tough love is almost always needed. Whenever Riley was upset, Huey tried to do as much as possible to reason with him and calm him down. It worked most of the time, but other times, they either argued or left each other alone to let out some steam. "I think I'ma quit that shit. I'm tired." Riley added, causing his big brother to roll his eyes.

"Riley, that's stupid. You know you gonna regret it if you actually _do_ quit." Huey said, starting to bob his head to the song again. Riley still had his eyes closed as he sighed heavily once again.

"Yeah, I guess you right nigga, but this nigga aggravates the hell outta me. Why he always givin' that nigga Tyree credit for the shit _we_ be doin'? Just 'cause the nigga a senior on Varsity don't mean nothin'. Shit, _I'm_ on Varsity and I'm a sophomore, so the nigga must not be doin' _that_ good! But Coach o' homo ass never givin' me, Ceez, Marcus or Lamaar credit. Always on _Tyree_ nuts! Gay ass muthafucka." Riley complained, quite reasonably by the way. "And you know what gets me the most? I was late by FIVE FUCKIN' MINUTES, NIGGA! Five minutes! And this bitch-made ass nigga Tyree show up to practice every single day LATE, nigga! Wanna know what this nigga gets? ONE MUTHAFUCKIN' LAP! That's his damn punishment? Nigga, punish _me_! Shit! But naw, this nigga got me doin' 100 pushups and runnin' the sled! Nigga, when I tell you I'm almost through, I mean that shit. Basketball is my shit, but I don't have a problem gettin' into art, nigga."

Huey knew all of this was true because Caesar once told him how Tyree was the Coach's star player, and even Huey had to admit that the nigga was not that nice. Riley, Caesar and Marcus had to be the best players in the school, but they all lacked something very important. Riley had the skills, agility and aim, but he was too damn selfish and he basically put the letter I in team. Caesar was a great shooter, but his dribbling skills could improve. Marcus was just like Riley, but his attitude was a bit more of cockiness when it came to basketball, rather than selfishness. Tyree was pretty good, but the only reason he was considered a star player was because of his ability to work well with his team, his safe basket shots and his limited dribbling technique. He didn't dribble too little or too much. Lamaar was almost like Tyree, but he took more time in dribbling and showing off rather than passing the ball or heading for the basket. Not that he was cocky or selfish, but he just gets so caught up in his ability to do tricks with the ball that he almost completely forgets about the game sometimes. It isn't until the opponent takes his ball when he actually plays the game the way everyone wants him to play. Huey noticed all of this and came up with the conclusion that the Coach wasn't really treating them unfairly, just teaching them a lesson on how to improve on their imperfections.

"Well, I still say you shouldn't give up that easily. Don't let that goofy nigga sweat you man. He gon' be gone next year and we already been in school for five months, which has went by pretty quick by the way. Just think, next year you could be the star player. Just need to lose that selfishness though. That's what the main problem is. Coach probably bein' hard on you just for that, so just work with the team and stop hoggin' the damn ball." Huey responded to his brother's rant with all seriousness, concern and encouragement. "Besides, if you quit and I catch a nigga talkin' shit, I'm gettin' suspended and I don't feel like dealin' with that." He joked with his sibling, earning a chuckle out of him.

"You stupid, nigga. But yeah I feel you. It's hard though, y'know. I can't just up and change what I'm used to. I can't change me." Riley replied, his voice sounding as tired as he looked.

"Nobody said to change you, personally. Just change yourself on the court. Pass the ball to your players 'cause, I mean, that's what they're there for. Don't beat yourself." Huey advised him. Riley finally opened his droopy eyes and looked at his brother, sitting on his bed slightly nodding to the Jay-Z song in Granddad's room and smiled at him.

"Thanks, Huey. You always know how to come through, nigga." He thanked his older sibling. Huey just nodded. Riley's smile turned into a smirk as he looked at his brother again. "You still a bitch." He joked. Huey smirked and rolled his eyes and continued bobbing to the music.

_10 minutes later_

Riley was knocked out. Coach must've really done some serious damage to him at practice because right after his conversation with Huey, the snoring began. Huey left his brother in the room and headed downstairs and into the kitchen to get something to eat. As he reached the refrigerator, he opened it and contemplated on what he wanted to eat.

_Okay, let's see…we have…fruit salad…regular salad…potatoes…veggie burgers! Might as well eat them before they go to waste._

Huey grabbed the plate covered in aluminum foil out of the refrigerator and placed it on one of the counters. Just as he was about to grab a plate from one of the cabinets, the door bell rang. Growing irritated that someone just rudely interrupted him from getting his nourishment, he damn near slammed the plate down on the counter and walked to the door.

He opened it to find a smiling Caesar. Caesar actually smiled so hard that Huey could've sworn it would stay like that. He just gave his friend a funny look and shook his head.

"Nigga, what you want? I was about to eat and you know how I feel when people interrupt me." He argued as he let his friend in and walked into the kitchen. "And shouldn't you be knocked out right now? Riley told me about how Coach did y'all." He added, putting his cold burger into the microwave. At that, Caesar groaned and rolled his eyes, something he rarely did unless it had to do with girl problems or basketball.

"Nigga, don't get me started with him. Little pussy punk bitch." He murmured, causing Huey to shake his head and smirk as he turned around to face his friend. "But yo," his eyes lit up again and his grin widened once more as he pulled out a sheet of paper with a DJ on it, "You remember that goofy Asian kid who good with the turntables?" He asked. Huey nodded.

"Hiro, right?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah…right…whateva…but anyways," Huey rolled his eyes and walked over to where his friend stood, right next to the bar in the kitchen, "…the nigga came up to me and told me he wanted to hear me spit a few at the homecoming after party, and seein' as you my partner in crime," he told Huey, putting an arm around his shoulders, "I want you to be there to support me. And you might wanna show them other niggas that talent of yours." Caesar concluded, smiling knowingly. Huey's eyes grew wide once he said that, then he glared at his best friend.

"Caesar, you didn't." His voice grew cold and dry, nearly sending a cold sliver down Caesar's spine.

"I didn't, what?" He asked, slightly confused. Huey harshly pushed Caesar's arm from around his shoulders and folded his arms in annoyance.

"Don't play stupid! You entered me into some type of contest didn't you?" Huey asked, raising his voice a little, but at the same time, trying to keep it down since Riley was sleeping, although the Jay-Z album still played as Granddad was almost ready. Caesar put his hands up in defense and shook his head rapidly, dreads flying everywhere.

"Naw man, I ain't do nothin'. I'm just makin' a suggestion." He genuinely stated. He wasn't afraid of Huey, but he knew he couldn't beat his ass, so he knew his place. Huey just nodded and narrowed his eyebrows. Caesar straightened out the homecoming after party paper and pointed to it while he continued to explain. "Dude said he would offer me $250 if I was real good, which, y'know, I am," he bragged playfully and popped his collar as Huey shook his head and smirked once more, "But this is somethin' I do nigga, I ain't about to hustle for no hobby. They got a name for people like that. And I refuse to be apart of a statistic!" Huey snorted at that and walked over to the microwave once he heard it beep.

Caesar finally decided to sit down at the kitchen table as he waited for his friend to sit across from him. Once Huey sat down, Caesar's face was plastered with another smile, but somehow, Huey had a bad feeling about this. "So…" He started but trailed on, on purpose. Huey's impatience slipped out as he rolled his eyes.

"So, what?" he said before taking a bite out of his burger. Caesar made a face as he saw Huey eat that…mess, and Huey gave him a fake smile as he continued chewing. Caesar grinned again and shook his head.

"So, how are things with you and Jazmine?" He asked, thinking Huey would yell at him and tell him to get out, even though he never did so unless he wanted to. To his surprise, Huey smirked a little and simply took another bite out of his burger. His eyes looked east and then west and Caesar's eyes grew ten times. "Nigga! Don't tell me you hit that already!" Caesar exclaimed loudly with the widest smile of the night. Huey shushed him and Caesar apologized. "But man, I knew ya'll were undercover freaks, I just knew-"

"Caesar, nothin' happened." He said, cutting Caesar off and rolling his eyes. "She's just…I can't even describe it man." He continued, his eyes drifting past Caesar as he thought of her. Caesar chuckled a bit at his friends glazed over expression.

"Huey, you got it bad my dude." He took notice and shook his head, still cheesin'. "Nothin' wrong with that though. But nigga, I'm hatin' on you right now. I'm tryna be like you when I grow up." He joked.

"What you talkin' 'bout nigga? I'm tryna be like you." Huey joked back, finishing his burger (it was rather small and…Huey was really hungry alright!). Caesar snickered and stood up to get some kool-aid out of the fridge.

"I don't know how you tryna do that. I'm single and I work hard as hell to keep up with my grades. Nigga the only person you tryna be is MLK or Malcolm X." He continued and smirked as he said so. Huey chuckled a bit and got up to get some water.

"Nigga you stupid." He said.

Caesar snorted and poured his drink into a plastic cup as Huey did the same with the water jug. "But yo, tell me one thing you like about her physically." He said, smirking again. Huey rolled his eyes.

"You ain't blind Ceez." He responded as the two friends went back to the table to sit down again.

"You damn right, but what do you like most about her?" He inquired excitedly, almost leaning over the table in Huey's face as he anticipated his answer. Huey looked like he was about to crack up at his friend's weird behavior, but instead he just rolled his eyes and sighed slightly.

"Fine…her stomach." He said, his cheeks turning slightly pink. Caesar noticed this and his eyes lit up.

"Nigga, I knew it! You _did_ hit!"

"For the last time, no I didn't Ceez!" Huey replied, more annoyed than before. "What is wrong with you?"

Caesar raised an eyebrow at that one. "Then…how did you-"

"When she stretched, her shirt came up and I saw her stomach and her….uhh…nevermind." Huey said, trying to change the subject, "So, how-" but Caesar wouldn't let him.

"No nigga! Don't change the subject. You saw her…what?" He asked enthusiastically as Huey inwardly slapped himself repeatedly for letting the secret nearly slip out.

"Forget it Ceez. I told her I wouldn't tell anyone." Huey finalized and shrugged. Caesar playfully glared and then sighed.

"You was just about to say it. Might as well finish."

"Nope."

Caesar blinked at his quick response.

"You a stubborn mug." He stated in an almost sad tone, Huey smirked and rolled his eyes. "I swear I won't tell nobody, mane. You know me. We boys! You supposed to tell me stuff like this when it's just us. When guys talk, they talk about stuff like this. So c'mon with it, nigga! C'mon and let it allll-"

"Damn it Caesar! You actin' just like Jazmine!" Huey yelled, forgetting about Riley. "Fine, but don't tell her I told you 'cause she's overdramatic and she won't talk to me in over a week." He half joked. Caesar's smirked a bit and nodded as if saying 'Continue'. "But, she has a belly piercing and I don't know what it is, but…I like it, a lot." He said, as he licked his lips unknowingly at the thought.

There was a silence in the air as Huey was in a slight daze and Caesar stared at his best friend, amused. It didn't take long for Huey to notice that he was out of it, especially when he looked at his best friend again.

He just sighed and fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"Man, you serious? I mean, it ain't that surprising, but it's still a little crazy that Jaz got somethin' like that." He stated in awe. Huey nodded as he agreed with his friend.

"Right? Just wait til' you actually see it. Like, lookin' at it could give a nigga…those…kind of dreams." He explained in a soft voice, as if he was hypnotized by that sparkly thing dangling from her belly. Caesar's cheeks were puffed up as if he was about to crack up.

"Man, you _do_ got it bad." He snickered a bit. Huey rolled his eyes and blushed a little.

"Once you see it, then you tell me if I'm over exaggerating." Huey replied before taking a sip of water.

"Whateva, man." Caesar joked. "Oh and just to make things even between us, don't tell Cindy I told you this but she got a-"

"Tattoo?" Huey asked knowingly. Caesar's eyebrows arched almost to his hairline.

"Nigga, who told you?" He said, getting slightly upset that he couldn't keep anything from Huey. Huey smiled a little at his friend's response.

"Jazmine told me when she told me when we came back, but she told me not to tell anyone. Well, it's a little too late for that." He said in an uncaring way. "But trust, I'm not tellin' anyone else."

"Same." Caesar agreed. "But real shit, I don't like Cindy more than a friend, but when she showed me that tat, I was hurtin' like hell…y'know, in the good way." He said, trying to keep it PG. Huey shook his head and snorted. "I'm serious man, it was that sexy. She got the tat on her left hip and it's shootin' stars and…damn, nigga I don't know how to explain how sexy it is, but she told me that she was gonna finally show it off during spring break when we go to her private pool party. Ooh I can't wait." Caesar exclaimed excitedly and Huey cracked up at him. After that conversation was done, the two best friends diverted their attention to the homecoming after party once again.

Just then, Riley walked downstairs lazily in his pair of boxers and a wife beater (still waking up), and into the kitchen to see his brother and his basketball buddy looking at him. Instead of asking why they did so, he just walked towards the fridge to get some orange juice. Y'know, that orange juice that _nobody_ is supposed to put their hands on. The freshly made orange juice that Granddad paid some people to squeeze the oranges for. Nope, he didn't drink the generic one that Granddad continued to argue with him to drink that instead.

Huey was about to say something about that, but he just shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Riley, come here."

"Naw nigga, I'm drinkin' this shit. I don't know why, but I can't get enough of it. Kinda like crack." He replied, pouring the liquid into the plastic cup. Caesar just laughed at his response as Huey grew annoyed.

"_No_, Riley. I'm not tellin' you to come here for _that._ Caesar got somethin he wanna show you." He impatiently retorted. Riley then walked over to sit in the seat next to Huey and chugged his drink down with both hands on the cup as if he's been without food for weeks. Caesar snorted and Huey ignored his brother's bizarre way of drinking.

"What you want, nigga?" Riley asked after he finished gulping down the drink. Caesar raised his eyebrow and eyed the two brothers back and forth.

"Ya'll act just alike. Can't show a nigga no love. Always a 'what you want, nigga' rather than a 'what up Ceez'." Caesar childishly complained. Huey chocked his eyebrow up at that.

"Man, don't lie. I say 'What up, Ceez' everyday." Huey argued.

"Well, not today." Caesar counter-argued. Huey rolled his eyes and groaned.

"Aye Ceez," Riley interjected, all eyes on him, "Quit actin' like a lil' hoe." He crudely stated, followed by snickering. Caesar just shook his head. "Say what you was gon' say, nigga."

Huey drunk the last of his water before Caesar explained the entire thing. He basically told Riley that he was going to rap at some point and time at the after party and he slightly begged for Huey to sing, but he didn't want to. "C'mon, Huey. You said you can sing." He whined.

Huey shrugged. "Don't mean I want the whole world to hear me." He answered nonchalantly. Riley snorted, earning a glare from Huey. "What's so funny?"

"Nothin', nigga. "

"No, _somethin'_ has to be funny."

"It's nothin', just…nigga you know you be rippin' that shit. Nigga, you got that special voice. Shit, I'm ashamed to say you even sound better than _me_." Riley explained and ended his statement with a smirk, but quickly erased it as he just realized what he had said, which caused Huey to smirk instead. Before he could cover it up, Caesar interrupted him with a wide ass grin.

_Calm down, nigga._

"Riley! Nigga, you sing too?" He exclaimed, getting excited for his two friends. The brothers shook their heads at his enthusiastic character. "Awwwwww shiiiitt!"

"Aye! What the hell? Keep ya'll voices down! I ain't got that many years left, but I ain't tryna go deaf!" Granddad yelled as he trotted down the stairs into the living room to grab the keys. All three boys looked at him with different expressions on their faces. Caesar gave him a knowing smirk, amused that he still went out on dates at his age; Riley stared at him confusedly; Huey just glared at him in disbelief.

"Granddad, your Jay-Z CD was so loud, we could hear it in _our_ room. What are you _talkin'_ about?" Huey argued. At this, Granddad pondered for a second and waved his hand as if saying 'shoo' to a bug.

"Shut uupp! I'll be home within an hour or two. Now, don't mess up my house!" Yeah, it was his way of saying goodbye, every time. Huey just waved one hand, Riley turned around in his chair to face Caesar who gave Granddad the peace sign. On that note, he was out the door and the three boys were all to themselves.

Riley started up the conversation again. "So uhh…who ya'll goin to homecoming with?" He said, remembering what they just talked about and trying to change the subject. Luckily, Caesar let it slide this time.

"You already know, Riley." Huey replied with his arms folded.

"Huh?" Riley was confused for a moment until he remembered what he saw earlier. His eyes grew wide and he snickered a bit. "Oh yeaahh! Nigga, I forgot about you and Jaz'. Ya'll niggas was gettin' it in. Here's a little advice though, lock the door just in case someone like…hmm, let's see…ME AND STACIA walk in again." He...he advised? After doing so, he cracked up laughing. Caesar's eyebrows narrowed at Huey and Huey gave him the eyebrow.

"What?"

"Yo, you told me you and Jaz' ain't do nothin'!"

"We _didn't_, Ceez. We just kissed…repeatedly…on my bed," He responded, his cheeks filling up with more and more heat the more he broke down his sentence, "…with her layin' under me." And that's all it took for Caesar and Riley to hunch over with laughter. They couldn't help it. Huey just groaned.

"He forget to add the part where they was grindin' against each other." Riley blurted out purposely, earning more laughter from Caesar and himself. Huey grew irritated quickly.

"Nigga shut up, damn." He huffed, folding his arms once more. Riley just snorted and rolled his eyes as Caesar placed an enormous smile on his visage.

"Aiight nigga, calm down." Said Riley, "But, ya'll already know who I'm goin' with, so Caesar, you found a girl yet? Or are you still sufferin' from bitch dependency?" He snickered, earning a smack in the back of the head from Huey. "Ow, nigga! CHILL!"

Caesar just snorted. "Naw nigga, I'ma just ask Cindy just to save the embarrassment of gettin' played in front of someone I don't know." Riley just nodded, but Huey shook his head.

"And you say you don't like her more than a friend." He half-teased. Caesar just rolled his eyes.

"You know it ain't like that, Huey."

"Whateva, nigga." Riley responded with a wave of his hand. "You know damn well you feelin' that white girl." Caesar wrinkled his eyebrows together.

"Man, you sayin' that like ya'll ain't cool. Nigga, she yo' best friend too." Caesar argued, getting a little riled up. Huey just watched the both of them, looking back and forth.

"And that's all she'll ever be, nigga. I mean, don't get me wrong, she cute and all, but I could never date no white girl. I mean, if you do, that's cool, 'cause that's how you are." Caesar glared at him for the last comment. "You know what I mean, Ceez. You just like women. I prefer chocolate though." He depicted as the other two gave him puzzled looks…well, Caesar gave him a puzzled look, but Huey gave a small grin.

"Whateva." He gave up trying to explain to his friends. "But yo, I'm stayin' over so uhh…make room for a nigga!" Caesar exclaimed excitedly out of nowhere.

"Again?" Riley asked in mock surprise. "Freeloadin' ass." He muttered, earning another smack in the back of his head by his older sibling. "Ow! Nigga, keep yo' hands to yo' self!"

Caesar just snickered and all three boys headed upstairs to chill in the room.

* * *

So how'd you like it? I'd really like to know. xD

Please review guyss!

Oh, & I'm workin' on Chapter 6 now, and boyyy is it gonna be somethin'! No worries, no worries. It's comin' to ya real soon! :D


	6. Prep For The Pep

First off, thanks for the reviews guys. Especially to MissG2020. Girl you reviewed every one of my chapters and for that I'm truly grateful! :)

Also, thanks lilcandy-78. I'm glad you like the story! And your welcome. I really like your story too. xD

Okay, secondly. I wanted to post this chapter earlier today, but I had to help my sister plan her baby shower and stuff. I stayed over there for hours, and can you believe she still hasn't picked a name! She's due in two months, she needs to hurry it up! lol. But yeah, that's my excuse for not posting this sooner. So my apologies to the impatient. :)

Man, I'm just so happy that my story doesn't disappoint so far. Hopefully the positive comments will continue! If they don't, then I know where I need to fix my mistakes, but please don't be rude because...well, I could give two *bleeps* about what you got to say if you come off disrespectful towards me. Constructive criticism is one thing, but being rude is another and I'm not gonna tolerate a simple nigga. point blank. *States with a black Airsoft bb gun pointed at the computer screen*

Now, *puts gun away* ENJOY! *smiles*

* * *

CHAPTER 6: PREP FOR THE PEP

_I be on the hotline, like errday_

_Makin' sho' da DJ know what I want him to play_

_You know I got my top down, and my beat l-ow_

_Rockin' my stunna shades and turnin' up my radi-a-o_

_Turn up my radio_

Jazmine Dubois groaned irritably as the upbeat Beyonce' song woke her from her slumber. She eyed her cell phone that read '6:00' angrily as if the thing was the devil. She may have been optimistic in the morning, but as for waking up, that was a challenge all in itself, especially after what happened the night before.

The dancers were really having a hard time remembering all of the steps and the usually patient and understanding Jazmine had to wonder ,after what seemed like the billionth time, whether they had a brain or not. It wasn't algebra or pre calc, it was simple dance moves. These girls could dance, but why they were so off was beyond her. She could've sworn that she had repeated one of the dance moves about 50 times and her head began to throb due to internal frustration. Without Stacia there, she could've killed herself with all of the questions and complaints from the other members of the dance team. Although she kept a kind-hearted expression on the outside, her thoughts were like…death. Okay, not really, but she was _really_ tired and unbeknownst to her, the other dancers knew it. They also knew to never provoke a sweet, generous person because whenever they were upset, they EXPLODED, so they no longer asked anymore questions, and somehow managed to learn the dance moves before their session at the Dubois residence was over.

Jazmine quickly, yet lazily, pushed the snooze button and began to drift back to sleep until the song rang in her ears the second time. "Uggghhhh!" She let out as she sat up slowly and fiercely punched her bed. There was no way she was going back to sleep now, so she sluggishly hopped out of the bed, grabbed her folded up towel from the nightstand and walked into the bathroom to take a shower.

_15 minutes later_

Jazmine was fully dressed in her blue dance team v-neck tee shirt that had the name 'Warriors' across the front in green, while the back had her last name on it with the same color. The team decided on a military kind of theme for their dance team, which sounded kind of corny at first, but after they learned the moves, it was actually…hot! Their pants had to be tan cargos and they had to wear black or grey combat boots: Jazmine chose to wear black ones. She announced to the team that they had to wear their hair in a bun, or one or two braids. Jazmine decided on two braids on either side of her head with the two curly tresses hanging on either side of her face. The leaders of the dance team, Jazmine and Stacia, decided to wear black rubber motorcycle type gloves. To say that the girls looked 'Tuff' would've been an understatement. They took it to a whole 'nother level.

Jazmine headed for her closet to put on her black Nike windbreaker and her school bag before heading out the door on her way to the Freeman's Residence.

_Knock, knock, knock._

As she waited for someone to come to the door, she pulled out her cell phone from her back pocket to text Stacia, and what a speedy texter she was.

_Hey, Stacia. Meet me in the dance room 7:15._

She placed her cell back in her pocket, knowing that it took Stacia nearly thirty minutes to respond back, and a few seconds later the door swung open to reveal a very stylish Caesar smirking as he saw her attire. Jazmine smiled at him and the two hugged before he let her in.

"Hey Jaz, Huey gon' love how you look. You actually look like you go hard.' He joked, as he swung an arm around his friend's shoulder and led her to the living room. Jazmine just giggled.

"Ceez, you're crazy." She pointed out and sat down on the couch and placed her bag on the empty seat to her left. Caesar sat next to her on her right. "So, you just couldn't go home, huh? Always free-loadin'." She joked and laughed as Caesar playfully pushed her over.

"I'm gettin' tired of ya'll sayin' that." He playfully announced. "Shoot, I'm practically family."

"Practically is the key word, _Michael_." She drew out his first name and playfully pushed him back.

"Aye, you niggas done playin'? We 'bout ready to go." Riley somehow engaged in their conversation. Jazmine raised that one eyebrow and Caesar snorted.

"Nigga, we was waitin' on ya'll slow asses." Caesar retorted. Jazmine just shook her head at Riley.

"Whateva , nigga." Riley replied and put his hand up as if saying 'get that mess out of here'. "HUEY! WE READY, NIGGA. C'MON!"

"RILEY, SHUT UP! WE GOT ENOUGH TIME!" Huey shouted from beyond the stairs. All he needed was his black Nike boots and he couldn't find them anywhere.

"NIGGA, WHAT'S _TAKIN'_ YOU SO LONG!" Riley yelled once again.

"SHUT THE HELL UP! THE BOTH O' YOU! IT'S BAD ENOUGH I GOT TO DEAL WIT' YA'LL ASSES BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL, BUT YA'LL TOO OLD TO BE YELLIN' UP IN MY GODDAMN HOUSE THIS EARLY IN THE MORNIN'! Can't even enjoy myself in my sleep. Who the hell they think they are yellin at 6:30 in the mornin' an' interruptin' my date wit' cutie pie Nia Long?" Granddad ranted on and on as he retreated back into his room. Jazmine and Caesar just blinked at each other and finally shook their heads. Jazmine decided to stand up, while Caesar stayed where he was. She walked down the hallway past Riley and attempted to go upstairs.

"Hey, where you goin'?" Riley asked her. "We don't got time for this, I'm ready to go." He stated in all seriousness. Since when was he so eager to get to school? Jazmine couldn't figure it out, but then she looked down at her attire and the light bulb went off.

Pep Rally.

And Wuncler High always had the best Pep Rallies.

Huey's slowness was not about to ruin Riley's day.

"Riley, don't worry, it won't take long." She promised him and walked up the steps. As she approached the second story, she walked into the boys' room and saw Huey in front of the closet, trying to find his shoes. He turned around as he suspected someone was there and smirked as he saw that it was Jazmine and turned back around. She blushed and walked over to him.

"Hey Huey, what are you looking for?" She asked as she stood next to him. She couldn't help but notice that his shoe game was on point. He had the hottest Jordans and the Timberlands that she's been wanting since November. His job must've paid him well.

"I'm just lookin' for my Nike Boots. I could've sworn they were in my closet." He answered her as he tried to think of where they were. Jazmine nodded and looked in the corner of the closet to find…

"Oh my God! Huey!" She exclaimed. Huey raised a brow at her excitement.

"What?"

"You got the Griffey's!" She replied and squealed. Huey tried his hardest not to laugh at her. "And they're the black and red ones! I've wanted those since…forever! And nobody really has those yet. You jerk!" She playfully pushed him a bit. "Why didn't you tell me! And why is it buried in your closet?" She continued on and on until Huey placed a hand over her mouth.

"Jazmine, calm down." He started with an amused smile. "I just got those two days ago and I need some clothes for them. Now could you please help me find my boots?" He slowly explained to her, causing her to roll her eyes. He finally pulled his hand away and swiftly kissed her before looking back at his closet.

"Fine, Mr. Swagga-licious." She retorted and snorted at the nickname she gave him. He just rolled his eyes. "I like your outfit by the way." She complimented him. Huey had on a black Nike windbreaker (just like Jazmine's, except, obviously, it didn't fit like a girl's), and dark blue straight legged Levis. She couldn't see what was underneath the windbreaker, but it didn't really matter. Huey rolled his eyes and smirked again.

"Thanks, but you do know that we're basically wearing the same thing, right?" He questioned her.

Jazmine's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion until she looked down and slapped her forehead."Oh wow, I forgot I had this thing on. I kinda just grabbed it off of the hanger and came over here." She told him. "Soooo… we match? Aww, that's so cute! And we go out together." She playfully cooed, knowing it would slightly irritate Huey. He just looked so cute when he was upset.

Instead, Huey just snorted and finally gave up looking for his boots. He settled for his white, red and black Fusions. As he put them on, he glanced over at Jazmine, who was still amazed at the many shoes that he had in his closet. "Oh my god." She whispered. "I'm hatin' Huey." She said, causing her boyfriend to chuckle at her choice of words.

"I'm serious! These shoes are _sexy_! I can't wait until I get a job." She continued as Huey continued to laugh at her. She just smiled at him. He finally put his shoes on and stood up.

"Well Jazmine, one day you'll be able to own all the shoes you want, but as for now, we gotta go." He insisted and saw the little pout on Jazmine's face. As she walked away from the closet and over to her boyfriend, she kissed him on the lips really quick and turned to walk down the hall. The two may have been going out, but it still didn't stop them from blushing. Huey grinned for a second and followed her as the two walked down the stairs.

As they approached the bottom of the stairs, they found Caesar and Riley chatting away.

"So the nigga just up and took yo' shit?"

"Yep."

"Nigga, what you do?" Riley asked in mild shock. "Don't tell me you went out like a bitch."

Huey heard this story so many times before that it was a wonder Riley didn't know about it by now. Two weeks ago, some punk at school apparently had the audacity to steal Caesar's iPod touch straight out of his backpack as he left to go to the bathroom. When he came back, he found that his highly expensive electronic device was gone, and since the rest of the class could care less about the 'no snitching' rule, they…well, snitched. Caesar had no choice but to handle his business…

"Hell naw, I knocked him in his muthafuckin' temple." Caesar responded, earning a chuckle out of Jazmine as Riley grinned, giving Caesar some dap. Huey just shook his head and pulled the keys out of his pocket.

"Let's go." He insisted and the four of them headed out the door.

* * *

If it was one person who was more amped than Riley Freeman about the Pep Rally, it had to be Cindy McPhearson. She always got a good kick out of representing from her class, even though she's a grade level lower than she's supposed to be. Every time the female basketball team was called, she would be the first one to ante up.

So it didn't surprise the rest of the crew that Cindy wasn't eating at lunch today. Every time she gets excited, she skips food. Riley may have been super hype, but that didn't stop him from getting his grub on.

For the moment, there sat only Riley, Cindy and Stacia in the cafeteria. Stacia sat directly across from Cindy, while Riley sat to the right side of Stacia. Now Cindy was cool with Stacia, but she couldn't help the fact that she was a tad jealous of her. I mean, Cindy's been crushing on Riley since the first time he got her in trouble back in the fourth grade. He had bet her that if she stole the jar of lollipops on the teacher's desk, than he would give her five dollars. Cindy took the bet, but surprisingly, not for the money. Hell, she would've taken the bet even if it wasn't monetary. She just loved the thrill of sneaking something from someone who was supposedly so powerful compared to her and the rest of the her peers. It just so happens, that just as Cindy was about to place a handful of lollipops in her school bag, the teacher walked into the classroom right along with the principal.

Imagine the wonderful outcome of _that _situation.

So she got detention for a week and was assigned to write her teacher an apologetic letter. All the while she was both upset and pleased. She was upset that she had deal with the consequences of her actions, but she was pleased to know that she didn't go out like a punk. She also seemed to gain acceptance into Riley's circle.

As of now, neither of them was into that type of sneakiness anymore. The most they would do is get high on occasion, but nothing _too_ serious. I mean, they're growing up. Childishness had to leave at the door.

Today, Cindy had on a blue and green Wuncler High t-shirt with a black leather jacket, dark blue skinny jeans and navy blue UGG boots. Her hair was in one long braid in the middle of her head and her bangs fell on her forehead, covering her eyebrows a bit. No one could deny the fact that she was a pretty fly white girl; the baddest in fact.

The people she hung out with were pretty damn fly themselves. Riley had on a fitted black LRG shirt in white lettering with a Levi's jean jacket. His jeans were Levi's and they were kind of like Huey's, but slightly baggier. He also sagged a little. His shoes were all black Nike ACG boots. His girly girlfriend had on the same outfit Jazmine had on, except her shoes were a dark grey. Her hair was also in one long braid, just like Cindy's with the exception of the bangs. She had to be the only girl at the table with black nail polish on. It's not like the other girls couldn't be as girly as she was, but they chose not to be. It was too much for them. Jazmine recently got her nails painted pink, but that was considered rare.

One thing about Stacia was that she was in love with cosmetics, so every other week, her nail polish was a different color and she wore make up almost every day. Riley liked it better when she didn't have on all that make up, but she was beautiful either way.

The three friends patiently waited for the other trio arrived as they began to converse.

"What's up Cin?" Stacia addressed Cindy. Cindy offered her a wide smile.

"Sup. I'm just waitin' on the Pep Rally." She replied anxiously. Stacia just giggled.

"Right? I knew you was my nigga." Riley said, giving Cindy a playful dap. Cindy smirked and nodded.

"'Preciate it. But yo, I can't wait to see the step and the dance team. Ya'll already _know_ ya'll gon' rip that shit." She beamed. Stacia playfully lifted her chin in the air.

"Yes, yes we know." Cindy giggled at her goofy voice and stole a fry from her plate. "Aye! Nigga, you chose not to eat." Stacia acted as if she was utterly upset, but the smile never left her face.

Cindy threw the fry at her friend's face, earning a chuckle to escape from behind her. She turned around to spot Caesar with Jazmine and Huey in tow. "What's up, yooo!" Cindy drew out, addressing Caesar.

Caesar jerked his head up and smiled as if saying 'what's up'. He sat down next to her while Huey and Jazmine sat across from them.

"Hey! Me and Ceez want someone to sit with us." Cindy announced, half-joking. Huey rolled his eyes and decided to sit next to Caesar, while Jazmine sat across from him. Cindy grinned widely, showing off her pearly whites. "Thank you, Huey." He just nodded and proceeded to eat his meatless salad.

Jazmine sat next to Riley, so she had to move her head back in order to speak to Stacia.

"Hey girl!" She gushed as Stacia said the same back. "I texted you this morning, did you get it?" Jazmine asked, almost worriedly. Stacia then gave her a pout and shook her head before glaring daggers at Riley, who turned his attention to the very interesting spot on the wall ahead. Caesar and Huey held in their laughter as they watched the couple's expressions.

"Sorry about that girl, but Mr. I-Can't-Control-My-Hormones got so…how should I put this…_excited_…that he didn't notice that my phone had dropped on the floor at my house last night. He then unknowingly stepped…no, STOMPED, on it and fucked up the screen." She explained, causing the others to crack up. Riley just scoffed and rolled his eyes. "But what did you text me?"

Jazmine just shook her head as if she was dismissing the entire idea. "It's nothing really. I just wanted the girls to meet up this morning for some extra practice, 'cause y'know, we only get like ten minutes of practice before the Pep Rally." She informed as Stacia nodded.

The rest of the crew continued to eat as Riley and Stacia started to talk. Pretty soon, they were caught up in their own conversation, so no one paid them any mind anymore. They eventually decided to head to the library to study for their World History quiz next block. After they left, Jazmine decided to speak out.

"Man, I'm so nervous it's ridiculous." Jazmine admitted before taking another fork full of her chicken salad. "I swear I've never been so frustrated with the dancers as much as I was last night. They just seemed to have swapped their minds with the slow kids on D hall." She complained as Cindy snorted.

"Aw girl, c'mon. I'm sure it ain't that damn bad. Shit, ya'll like the hottest dancers in Maryland, and ya'll probably so good, you don't even realize it. Just chill, 'cause either way, ya'll gon' get a roar of applause." Cindy comforted her best friend with a smile. Jazmine smiled back and took a sip of water.

"Thanks Cin. I still can't stop the nervousness though." She responded and swept a piece of her hair out of her right eye.

Huey looked at his girlfriend and could see the obvious nervousness in her eyes. "Look Jaz, everything's gonna be fine. You're supposed to be nervous. If you're not nervous, then you're not human. Even big time celebrities get nervous before they perform, but you know what, once they get onstage and perform, the nervousness goes away. So like I said, you gon' be fine. And the good thing about it is that you not gon' be alone. You got a whole team with you. So just chill." Huey advised her, holding her hand under the table. Jazmine blushed lightly and smiled.

"Thanks Huey. You're such a good boyfriiieend." She cooed playfully. Huey rolled his eyes and snorted.

"Well duh."

"Someone's mighty arrogant, huh?" Caesar jokingly butted in.

"Yeah, I don't know who this nigga think he is." Cindy added on with a smirk. "Tryna hide the fact that he holdin' Jazzy hand under the table. Nigga you ain't slick." She teased as Caesar and Jazmine laughed.

Huey groaned slightly and decided to sit next to Jazmine again since she was alone on her side of the table. Once he sat down, he gave her a peck on the cheek, causing her to blush and smile.

"Aww…they're so cuuuuute." Cindy continued as she playfully rested her head on Caesar's shoulder. Just then, Caesar slightly tensed up, but quickly relaxed to her touch. It didn't go unnoticed by Huey though. He just smirked at his best friend and dug into the remainder of his salad. Jazmine threw a shredded carrot at Cindy and laughed.

"Stop being a goofball." She jokingly instructed. Cindy just shrugged and plastered a Colgate smile.

"I just can't wait 'til the Pep Rally. Niggas is gon' be hype as a bitch!" Cindy exclaimed excitedly. Caesar smirked at her hype nature.

"Heck yeah. I guess I'm still nervous, but I'm still kinda pumped about it." Jazmine also exclaimed excitedly, this time causing Huey to smirk at her.

Those girls were just too adorable when they got excited.

Just then, the bell rang, earning a groan from the whole table.

"Aww, I don't wanna go to Chemistry!" Cindy complained and pouted, while Caesar rolled his eyes in agreement.

"Yeah, me neither." He agreed. "But don't worry 'cause next block is the last block before the Pep Rally starts and we only got twenty minutes." He guaranteed. Just as he wanted to, he caused Cindy's eyes to light up and a smile to break out on her facial features.

"Yeah, you right. C'mon and let's leave these two lovebirds alone." She half-joked and suffered the consequences of pieces of chicken being thrown at her. "Aye Niggas, chill!" She playfully shouted.

Jazmine giggled and got up. "Cindy, you know we have the same class." She reminded her and jokingly rolled her eyes before turning to Huey. "So I'll see you later, Huey." She stated and kissed him briefly. "Bye baby." She announced before walking away from him. Caesar turned around to look at Huey with a knowing smirk before walking with the two girls.

Huey was slightly shocked at her calling him 'baby', but he just smirked and waved to her before leaving to go to his Statistics class.

* * *

"Okay, class. Now you see, anything that has to do with Hydrogen is an acid. So if I say, 'what's the formula for Sulfuric Acid?' what would you say?" The slightly overweight white woman of a Chemistry teacher asked her students. Everyone either had a bored look on their visages, or they were sleep. It's not as if the class was _that_ hard, in fact, sometimes it was a little too easy, but it was just…boring as hell. Just another science class with math involved in it.

Jazmine Dubois had to be the sweetest girl to ever exist because when the teacher's face fell in sadness and disappointment, she actually felt bad. It wasn't the teacher's fault that Chemistry was so boring. It just wasn't an interesting subject. So she decided to answer the question. "Umm…H2SO4?" She answered with uncertainty, but luckily for her, she was correct. The teacher beamed happily and clapped her hands three times, earning plenty of raised eyebrows from her students.

"Yes! Yes, Jazmine! That's correct." She nearly squealed with glee. It took all of Jazmine's might to fight urge to roll her eyes. She gave a small smile to cover up her slight irritation. The teacher grinned back and turned around to put more formulas on the board. There was a collective groan heard when she wrote an extra long problem. The teacher shook her head dismissively and gave the class a sympathetic smile. "Sorry class, but I have to make sure you get this down. I would hate to have to fail students who don't comply to my wishes by being _lazy_." She started in a knowing voice. Some of the classmates straightened up a bit at the mention of them becoming potential failures. Other classmates rolled their eyes or gave a blank expression. This lady was so dramatic sometimes.

Which is why, y'know…they're back in her class for the second year.

"So please just at _least_ jot this information down in your notebooks." She slightly pleaded. The class groaned once again, but cooperated. Jazmine glanced over at Cindy and stifled her laughter. Cindy was so bored that she nearly dozed off, but once she began to tip, she quickly straightened back up. Eventually, she took her binder out of her bag to follow along with the class. Jazmine looked over at Caesar on the other side of her and saw him texting under his desk with a smirk on his face. No doubt he was texting Huey.

_Huey._

A smile grew on Jazmine's face as she thought of him. She couldn't wait to see his face. Of course it would be pretty hard to spot him at the Pep Rally with as many people in their school. Oh well. If she couldn't see him at the Pep Rally, he would definitely see her, seeing as she would be the center of attention, along with the rest of her team.

_I wonder what he's doing right now._ She thought.

As the teacher yapped on and on about formulas and what not, Jazmine looked to her right on the wall and read the clock. 1:28.

_Good. Two more minutes til' next block._

Right along with the rest of the class, she could not stand Chemistry. How the hell was this class even going to help her in the future? She was going to be a veterinarian for crying out loud! Chemistry?

But in order to get her advanced diploma, Chemistry, right along with Algebra II was needed. It wasn't really a problem because both classes, to her, were a breeze. However, Algebra II was much more enjoyable than Chemistry, and Algebra II wasn't even _enjoyable_.

So imagine the students' _pain_.

The teacher finally finished writing the three problems on the board with the students in tow. "Now class, this will be homework."

"Will be, or is?" A cute dark skinned boy named Tony stupidly asked. A girl mixed with black and Korean named Briana sucked her teeth, causing him to turn around and glare at her. "Damn, my bad for askin' a question."

"Well it was stupid one." She retorted, harshly.

"Shut up!"

"Make me!"

"You know what-"

"ALRIGHT NOW! CALM IT DOWN! IF YA'LL DON'T SHUT THE HELL UP, I'LL DO IT FOR YOU MYSELF! NOW SIT DOWN AND SHUT. UP!" The teacher shouted out of the blue, waking Cindy up from her accidental nap. Caesar and Jazmine looked at each other with raised eyebrows and glanced back at the teacher. The entire class blinked while the usually calm, collective teacher calmed down. "Now class…I'm sorry you all had to see that, but you all know I hate any kind of altercation." No one dared to move. "Now, to answer your question, Tony, this _is_ homework, alright?" She said in a strangely sweet voice. Tony, still shocked at her sudden outburst, nodded slowly. Just as she was about to say something else, the bell rang and the students jetted out of the class without a word.

The teacher sighed and shook her head before erasing her board for her next class.

In the hallway, Jazmine, Cindy and Caesar met up with Huey, Riley and Stacia at the lockers on A hall. Riley and Stacia were talking about Riley doing Behind the Wheel in two weeks, while Huey placed his Statistics book in his locker. His back was turned, so he didn't see Jazmine sneak up behind him.

"Boo!" She blurted out behind him, expecting him to jump. To her slight disappointment, he didn't budge. He just snorted and shook his head. "Dang it." She grumbled in defeat.

"Hey Jazmine." He greeted and turned around to face her, his locker still open. She smiled and quickly kissed him on the lips.

"Hey Huey." She greeted back, causing him to raise his eyebrow.

"What, no baby this time?" He half-joked with a smirk.

"Huh?" Jazmine was genuinely confused.

"You called me baby earlier before you left to go to your class." He reminded her and smirked as the light bulb seemed to turn on in her head. "I'm just wondering if you were gonna call me that again, or if it was a one-time thing." He joked, causing her to blush and giggle. The rest of the crew smirked at the cute couple.

"Stop it, Huey." She playfully warned. He rolled his eyes and wrapped and arm over her shoulders.

"Aww, young love. So cute." Caesar joked, causing Cindy, Riley and Stacia to snicker. Jazmine just allowed the heat to reach her cheeks and smiled as Huey ignored his statement.

"Ya'll niggas doin' too much for me. A day ago ya'll niggas was actin' all awkward and now ya'll could give two fucks about expressin' ya'll feelings. But shit, nigga I ain't mad at ya." Riley praised them as he playfully gave Huey dap. Huey smirked and rolled his eyes again.

Seriously, his eyes were gonna get stuck up there one day.

"Yeah well, you shouldn't be talkin' Riley. Ya'll niggas be gettin' it in _daily_." Caesar pointed out with a smirk as he eyed Riley and Stacia. Riley glared.

"Nigga, hush."

Caesar just shrugged and leant against the lockers. "So, we should get goin' to Mr. Scott's class before his old ass trip again." He joked.

"Hell yeah. That nigga be breathin' all down my neck and shit. I be like 'Bitch, if you gon' do somethin' like that, carry some fuckin' breath mints'." Cindy complained as Huey ignored her and finally shut his locker. Jazmine smiled at her and Caesar snorted. Riley and Stacia slightly frowned as they realized they weren't going to have class together.

"I got Home Ec next." Stacia announced softly, as if the others didn't know. Riley nodded, and then smiled.

"I know baby. But don't worry, we only gon' be in class for 20 minutes this time." He reassured her as he wrapped his arms around her lower back. "Since all of us, except for Huey, gon' be on the floor, I'ma see you up close and how could you ignore me?" He joked as she giggled and kissed his cheek.

"Yeah, but I love you so much baby. I can't stand to be away from you for a second." She replied in a sad tone as the others just stood there waiting for the love fest to end...well, everyone but Jazmine. She thought they were so adorable together.

Riley smiled and shook his head. "I love you too baby. But you'll be fine. Now go 'head and go to your class before you be late."

"Okay. Bye baby." She hesitantly dismissed herself and walked off. Riley just waved and turned around to meet four smirking visages. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Shut up." He warned them all before they said anything. After that, he began heading to his art class. "See ya'll later." He hollered down the hall without expecting a response.

Huey still had his arm around Jazmine's shoulders as the two walked to their Government class, along with Cindy and Caesar who awkwardly walked behind them.

Pep Rally was going to begin in approximately twenty minutes. Will it be as extravagant as everyone expects it to be, or will something seriously go down?

The six friends would just have to wait and see.

* * *

PEP RALLY BABY! I know last time I said this chapter was where the excitement was, but I decided to change a few things, so next chapter is actually where the real action is. So you want to know how things'll go down?

REVIEW!


	7. Pep Rally

Hey guys!

Okay, so here's the thing. I purposely put the story off for today, but I didn't plan on putting it off _this_ late! Smh! Damn internet was actin' like it didn't know how to work. That is until I showed the nigga my gat! *laughs maniacally*

*people all around stare with blank faces*

Uhh...yeah...anyways...

SHOUTOUTS!

MissG2020, (Aww thanks! She said thank you and she's doing fine, just a nuisance is all lol), Miss Ace (Girl I had a feeling you forgot about me *tear* lol jp), & jayjai107 (yeah, that teacher was trippin' hard!)

Thank you guys! You don't know how much it means to me to get such positive feedback!

And ya'll know I had to make the crew swagged out though lol.

But yeah, I feel like I could've done better with this chapter, but it's too late and I'm too tired to make alterations, so I hope you like it!

* * *

CHAPTER 7: PEP RALLY

"Five more minutes until Pep Rally begins, so we won't be able to finish painting the clay pots until next Tuesday." The art teacher informed the class. "So it's about time to clean up."

Riley loved art with a passion, so he was always frustrated when something or someone prevented him from completing his artwork, even if it had to do with the Pep Rally. "Damn." He muttered as he placed his clay pot on one of the art tables. He nearly ran to the sink to wash his hands and his paint brushes. He quickly dried off his hands, picked up his book bag and scurried out of the room. He was supposed to be in the gym two minutes ago and, although it was two minutes, he knew his bitch ass Coach would trip. At that, he rolled his eyes.

As he approached the gym, he was surprised to find his Coach actually smiling at him.

Wow.

He also noticed that some of his teammates had on their uniforms, and others were dressed just as casual as he was. Thank God the Coach didn't make it mandatory for them to wear their uniforms this time or he would never hear the end of it.

He threw his bag towards the wall on the gym, ignoring his Coach's weird behavior, and walked up to Caesar and Cindy. "What up niggas!" He playfully greeted. "Ya'll know I'm hype as a bitch!" He bellowed.

"Woop Woop!" Cindy added to the excitement and did a jig. Caesar danced along with her and started doin' the dougie. Just then, the DJ on the other side of the gym played Lil' Wayne's 6'7' and the basketball, football, rugby, volleyball, and even the soccer team members were hype.

"Ayee!" Riley loudly chanted as he did a jig of his own, along with Caesar and Cindy. Coming up behind them were their fellow teammates and their good friends Lamaar and Marcus. Marcus was a better dancer than Lamaar, so all four friends stood beside each other, still dancing to the music as Marcus did some Chris Brown moves.

It wasn't long before the drum line of the band came through both doors on either side of the DJ, playing along with the song. "Oh shit, niggaaa!" Cindy shouted, half-heard through the music. Everyone loved the drum line. The band was hot too, but there was just somethin' about the drum line that hyped everyone up to their highest peak.

Following behind the drum line were the students of Wuncler High School. Behind them were the teachers.

As the students filled up the bleachers, going to their right class, and the teachers lined up against the walls, the music changed to Chris Brown's Look At Me Now and the crowd went wild.

"Ayyee!" "That's that shit, nigga!" "Ah! Ah! Ah!" "Yeeaah!" "Damn!" "Look at me now!"

They sang along with the song and did their little dances as they stood in their spots. The cheerleaders on the floor did a dance they had practiced as the music continued.

The step team and the dance team were nowhere to be found. Maybe they were going to make an entrance or something. Nobody knew, but they couldn't wait for this thing to get started.

In the Senior section that read 'Class of 2011', Huey stood on the third row next to the black and Korean beauty, Briana. He didn't really pay her any mind though. He just looked to the gym floor where the band, the sports players and the cheerleaders were.

Couldn't say the same for Briana though.

The desperate five foot young woman shot a few glances in his direction and couldn't help but smile. He was so cute and…tall. Tall was good. It was actually a turn on. But she knew that he was taken. Immediately, she inwardly groaned.

_Jazmine Dubois. _

The display she'd seen earlier in the hallway after Chemistry nearly made her blanch. To see Huey kiss Jazmine and then wrap his arm around her shoulders both shocked her and pissed her off.

Just who does Jazmine Dubois think she is? That miss goody-two-shoes took her potential man! What did he _see_ in her anyways? She was too sweet and naive. What would a scowling, seemingly mean-spirited, and highly intelligent guy want with a stupid, sensitive and overly sweet girl like _Jazmine Dubois_? Briana rolled her eyes. It was whatever. Their relationship would blow over soon. Huey would realize that Jazmine is not what he wants and Briana will gladly open her arms to let him in. It wouldn't be long. All she had to do was wait.

Meanwhile, the DJ gradually turned off the music and the drum line stopped playing their drums. The crowd cheered excitedly until the President of Wuncler High warned them to quiet down. "Alright, everyone settle down, now." She sternly announced in the microphone. It took a minute, but the crowd eventually went silent.

"Okay. Hello you guys! And welcome to the first 2010-2011 Pep Rally of the year!" She started as the crowd began to go wild again. She shushed them again and continued. "Settle down, please. Now, before we get started, would everyone please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance presented by the AROTC."

At that, the entire gym rose up on their feet. Some people placed a hand over their hearts while others just stood respectively as the AROTC leaders walked out and held the flag and the band began to play.

After the Pledge, everyone took their seats on the bleachers.

As Huey started to sit down, he felt something lightly graze his butt and realized that it was…someone's hand? He turned to his left and saw Briana with a false apologetic look on her face.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You just had something on your pants and it was bothering me." She lied. Huey continued to look at her as he sat down as if she was crazy but he let it go. He wasn't stupid. He knew nothing was on his pants, but he just brushed it off.

"Oh, thanks." He nonchalantly thanked her and diverted his attention back to the floor. Briana slightly glared at him for looking at her like that, but she soon paid attention to the floor as well.

"Now we'd like to reintroduce to Wuncler High, the all male basketball team!" The president excitedly exclaimed as the crowd cheered for the team. The boys all ran to the center of the gym to get into a huddle. In the huddle, they began to chant something incoherent to the crowd, but it still sounded good. Riley ended it with a "YOU KNOWW!" And everyone went crazy as the team left the floor.

Then came the female basketball team, the volleyball team, the soccer team, the football team and the rugby team.

The cheerleaders were reintroduced as well, but rather than chanting and huddling, they did a routine, which was kinda wack, but it was whatever. The gym clapped for them anyways.

Next, the President made a few showcased the candidates for Homecoming King and Queen and Prince and Princess, followed by some more hype music for the students (and teachers) to dance to.

And then…

The moment they've all been waiting for…

All of a sudden, the gymnasium was pitch black, earning a few shrieks from the punks in the stands. Once the lights flicked back on, the step team was in the center of the floor with the dance team in tow, posing. The audience roared once they saw their beloved 'club hoppers' on the floor.

Huey couldn't help but smirk as he saw Jazmine looking all cute. She had her eyebrow raised, just as Huey always did, except it was a bit sassier and her hands were on her hips. Her hips were sort of leant to the right and her back was straight. All that attitude was _very_ appealing to Huey.

And oh Lord. Briana's nosy ass happened to notice him smirking at his girlfriend and she puffed silently. Huey didn't even know that she did it; he was just focused on his girl.

The step team started and did their moves and what not. And…okay, they're not really important to you guys are they? I mean, we're waiting on Jazmine and Stacia. Not the step team.

But the crowd loves them too, so…sigh.

Oh well, skipping them…

When the step team finished, they went back to their posing positions in front of the dance team. All of a sudden, Another Planet by Jawan Harris and Chris Brown blared through the speakers and earned a reaction out of both the dance and the step teams. The difference is that the step team was leaving by stepping along with the song and the dance team walked up to the area where the step team just was in a saucy manner. The way they switched their hips caused some boys in the crowd, along with some girls (?) to yell out and whistle.

"Go 'head, now!" "Yeah, baby!" "Damn!" "Okaaay!" "Owww!"

Huey definitely couldn't disagree with the crowd on that one. Even Stacia looked sexy walking like that. Not that he didn't think she was pretty or anything, but he didn't look at her like that, so it was a definite shock.

He eyed Jazmine and bit back a groan. She was increasingly turning him on more and more and he despised himself a little for not having control over his hormones. He just couldn't help but stare at her ass as she continued to walk!

Riley reacted to the girls' switching just as Huey did. He cursed himself a little bit, but a part of him didn't care. His girl was killin' it, right along with Jazmine.

Now he _really_ had to curse himself on _that_ one.

Jazmine, though? She was like his big sister. What the hell?

But she was killin' it though.

Riley decided to just focus on his baby.

When the step team was finally gone and the dance team took their place, they stopped walking and got into a 'Rhythm Nation' pose. Jazmine and Stacia were in the front, two girls, Chelsea and Leah, were in the back, two girls, Meloney and Tiffany, were on the right side of the group and two other girls, Brandi and Nikole, were on the left side of the group. It was sort of like a Cross. As the first line of the chorus began, the real dancing started.

_I be up in Mars, I be up in Mars_ [Jazmine and Stacia pop-locked along with the beat, moving their hips around in a ticking motion and moving their arms towards the ceiling.]

_I be so fly I-I-I can touch the stars, _[The remaining members remained still as Jazmine and Stacia continued to dance. Both girls slid to the left and then to the right and did some sort of swerving move that got the crowd a little pumped.]

_I be up in Mars, I be up in Mars_ [Jazmine and Stacia continued to pop lock.]

_When you see that spaceship, _[They swerved their hands as if indicating that a spaceship was there]

_YUP, that's my car _[Everyone in the stands yelled as the entire dance team threw their hands up in the air in a gangster motion.]

The whole dance team shifted left to right and did some hot moves as the song went on and one. Once it was Chris Brown's turn to sing, the DJ did some scratching and the song switched to something the dance team knew what get the crowd hype…

_Yes…_[The girls switched their hips from side to side as the beat commenced.]

_It's me again…_[The crowd went freaking crazy! The girls continued to sway their hips to the beat.]

_And I'm back…_[The team mouthed the words as they did their last sway.]

_Woo! _[The girls clapped together and did the old school TLC Creep dance as the crowd sung along.]

_Oh I, Oh I, Oh I-I, baby_

_Oh I, Oh I, Oh I-I, yeah_

_Oh I, Oh I, Oh I-I, baby_

_Oh I, Oh I, Oh I-I, yeah_

The girls were killin' it! They stopped with the classic dance and smoothly did a dance of their own, full of pops, twists and grinds. Yeah, the grinds were definitely the best part.

Huey, Riley and Caesar were mesmerized by the girls' dancing. Huey was, of course, paying attention to Jazmine, Riley was paying attention to Stacia and Caesar was just paying attention. He thought all of the girls were gettin' it! Though he loved Jazmine and Stacia as friends, he didn't want to think about that right now. Right now, they were just two sexy girls rippin' the dance routine.

Huey diverted his attention from Jazmine's entire frame to her hips. Damn it! He couldn't even concentrate on the dance altogether! He knew Jazmine would ask if he liked it, but if he didn't pay attention, how would he? I mean, he did like what he saw, but that was kinda beside the point. He eventually gained enough control to look at the actually dancing rather than the girl's physical appearance.

_It's only 'cause I need some affection, oh _

_So I creep, yeah I just keep it on the down low_

_Said nobody is supposed to know_

_So I creep, yeah, cause he doesn't know what I do_

_And no attention goes to show_

_Oh, so I creep_

Right before T-Boz' second verse, the last line echoed a few times and the song scratched right into Roger That by Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj and Tyga.

Huey rolled his eyes once he heard the song. He knew Jazmine definitely didn't pick _this_ song. The other day, she said that she didn't care for _Young Money_. So this had to be someone else's idea.

The beat was hot though.

_Errrrrr_

_I'm in the collard green 6 cornbread in the guts_

_Got that Halloween kicks trick or treat in the clutch_

_C'mon (censored) is you trickin' or what?_

_Flow, f-f-flow tighter than a (than a, than a)(errrrr)_

_Just hopped off the plane come back to van couv_

_Little white tee some (censored) and bamboo_

_White girls tell me 'Hey Nicki your camp rules!_

_Is that why you get more (censored) than shampoos?'_

The DJ did a remix as the girls began to Krump in sync. The crowd looked at them in awe as they continued to kill it. It seemed as though they would never get tired.

Which is a flat out lie! Well, they really didn't look tired, but they sure as hell felt like it.

The girls were always tired when they danced, but they loved it. Their adrenaline was on high and they loved to get positive reactions out of the audience. It just pumped them up even more.

After the remix ended, the exit song came on and it was no other than…

_With music by our side, to break the color lines_

_Let's work together to improve our way of life_

_Join voices in protest to social injustice_

_A generation full of courage come forth with me_

_People of the world today are looking for a better way of life_

_We are a part of the rhythm nation!_

The girls stood in one spot and recited the last line as loud as possible, before a loud ass explosion erupted, thus, ending their routine.

At that moment, the students of Wuncler High clapped, cheered, hooped and hollered, threw crazy strings, blew horns and all of that for the dance team. The girls smiled and either waved to the crowd or bowed their heads in a respectful way. Jazmine, Leah and Chelsea bowed as the rest of the girls waved.

It wasn't long before the girls left the floor and headed to their right class within the crowd.

As Jazmine and Leah headed to the Senior class, people congratulated them on their performance and both girls thanked them and blushed. Leah waved to Jazmine as she sat next her boyfriend somewhere in the back row. Jazmine tried to look for Huey and damn near strained her neck trying to find him, when someone tapped her shoulder. She turned to her left to find her boyfriend looking down at her with a small smile. Jazmine smiled back and hugged him. She couldn't wait to get to him. The entire time she performed, she thought of Huey. She missed him within the few moments they spent away from each other.

Huey hugged her back and lead her to the area where he was sitting. Right then, Jazmine spotted someone with long dark hair, almond shaped eyes and medium brown skin.

_Briana Taylor_.

Jazmine didn't exactly know why, but for some reason, she always sensed a bad vibe from that girl. She didn't even know the girl and she internally slapped herself for judging her before getting to know her. But the thing is…she didn't want to get to know her.

Something told her that if she did, only trouble would await her.

So as she approached her seat, she let Huey sit next to the girl as she sat on the right side of him. Huey just shrugged at her suggestion and did as she told him.

The rest of the Pep Rally went on great. The seniors won the spirit yell and the entire upperclassmen, along with the sophomores, marched over to the freshman, chanting 'GO BACK TO JONES!'.

Jones was one of the middle schools in the Woodcrest area, and most students who went to Wuncler came from Jones. So the school just joked around with the freshman about that (well, some were serious).

Yep, the Pep Rally was amazing and everyone was content.

Well, almost everyone.

Briana continued to shoot daggers to the couple beside her as she watched them kiss for a brief second before they stood up to walk away. The Pep Rally was over, so everyone began to leave the stands. Everyone, but Briana, of course.

_One way or another, you'll be mine, Huey Freeman. You just wait._

The pretty little psycho's thoughts became a bit more murderous than she ever thought possible, but at that point, she didn't really care.

She just wanted Huey all to herself, and she was not going to let anyone stand in her way.

* * *

Briana? Uh oh! I think this is the point where the drama begins...yeah...soooooo

Please tell me what you think! I'd love to hear from you! xD


	8. And You Are?

Okay, so just to be safe, I'ma put a disclaimer up here for the rest of the chapters lol. I would hate to get penalized for not doing so, so

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE BOONDOCKS!

There we go. Simple right? Okay, but anyways.

THANKS YOU GUYS! xD

Shoutouts to Miss Ace Thank You, MissG2020, jayjai107, and the newcomers MzMinni3 (aww thank you!) & Geon!

In the words of that annoying Drake character, "You the f* best!" :D

And thanks to the people who favorited and followed! Seriously, ya'll are the best!

Now, the story begins. (Dun, Dun, Dunnn!)

* * *

CHAPTER 8: AND YOU ARE…?

School was over and the crew decided to head over to Caesar's. His aunt Joan left 40 dollars on the counter for him, so he decided to use it for a little celebration of the girls' performance. It was nothing new. They always celebrated every time the girls danced.

But they never danced like _that_ before.

And not only did he do it for the girls, but he also did it for a little 'good luck' on his, Cindy's and Riley's game tomorrow. So Caesar decided to treat everyone by ordering two large pizzas (pepperoni and bacon), hot wings, a two-liter Coke and a medium veggie pizza with no sauce (for Huey of course).

As everyone waited for the pizza man to arrive, they sat in the living room. Jazmine, Cindy and Stacia stood against the wall by the window, chatting away as Riley and Caesar sat on the floor playing Call of Duty: Black Ops on the PS3. Huey sat on the sofa behind them and watched them play.

Riley was whooping Caesar's ass in the game and he couldn't stop laughing as Caesar kept shouting out. "No!" "Hey!" "That's not fair!" "My button stopped workin'!"

"Whateva nigga." Riley eventually replied through his laughter. Huey just shook his head at the two.

The girls were just talking about what they were going to wear to the homecoming dance the following day. Cindy decided to wear a red, strapless dress that had a gold lining right under her bra-line. Her heels were gold and tomorrow, she would go to Stacia's to get a French mani & pedi. She wanted to straighten her hair and flip it. Then she wanted to take two pieces of her hair on either side of her face and pull it back for that princess hairstyle kinda thing. As for her makeup, she wanted it to be as natural as possible.

Jazmine chose to wear a strapless dress that was a white color on top, and sort of a blue green at the bottom. Her dress had a bow on her right side of it. Her heels were silver with a few studs leading up to the straps that would be ankles. Her nails were already painted so she didn't have to worry about that. She decided on wetting her hair and making it curly. Of course she'd have to put hair stuff in it so that it didn't get poofy. For her makeup, she wanted her eyelids a subtle blue color blending with white. She didn't necessarily like eyeliner, but if she decided to use that, she wouldn't use too much. Of course the cosmetic departure is to be assisted by none other than Stacia Jackson.

And speaking of Ms. Jackson, she decided on wearing a black spaghetti strap dress with silver specks running along the bottom part of the dress. Her heels were black and silver. Her hair was in micros, so she decided to wear them out. Her makeup would consist of smoky eyelids and thick eyeliner that would have little curves at the corner of her eyes. She would personally redo her nails to white, black and grey.

All of the girls' dresses were right above their knees and they decided not to even mess with the mascara. They're eyelashes were long enough. They did however decide on wearing clear lip gloss. Lipstick was a bit much.

"I can't wait! My baby's in for a surprise." Stacia exclaimed at first, but whispered the second line, causing the other girls to smile and nod in agreement. Though Cindy had no date, she knew that any boy would be impressed with the way she was going to look tomorrow. She still couldn't help but feel that twinge of envy towards Stacia, but she quickly threw that emotion out the window. They were friends, she would just have to try to find someone else and get over her Riley crush.

Jazmine glanced over her shoulder to spot Huey looking at the other boys play the game with an amused expression. Caesar was really upset and it looked as if he was trying not to lash out on Riley.

She smiled and turned to see her friends' amused expressions as well. Cindy had an eyebrow raised and Stacia had her lips curved. Jazmine just blushed and grinned at them. "Stop it."

"No, _you_ stop it you love sick fool." Cindy joked.

"Y'know, I don't even know why you keep mentioning the word_ love_. We just started going out, Cindy." Jazmine retorted, a little annoyed. Cindy snorted and rolled her eyes as Stacia giggled.

"Girl, please. You niggas can't stand bein' away from each other. Ya'll can't fight the urge to kiss each other when ya'll together-"

"And the way ya'll stare at each other may be an indication." Stacia added by cutting Cindy off. Cindy just sucked her teeth.

"Nigga, don't do that." She warned her, as if Stacia would care. Stacia just shrugged as Jazmine rolled her eyes.

"Stop it you guys. We don't love each other yet. We just really, really, really like each other." She started and sucked her teeth when she saw her friends smiling faces. "Look, even if we _did_ love each other, we still need to take it slow."

Stacia nodded, but Cindy rolled her eyes. "Girl, whateva. The heart wants what the heart wants and your heart wants Huey." She stated as she pointed at Jazmine and Huey.

"Yeah Cin, but if Jazmine doesn't want to rush, we shouldn't pressure her into doing it." Stacia reasoned with her. She could see where both girls were coming from, but she also knew how Jazmine was feeling. "I know you've been waitin' for this day to come for a long time." She half-joked, "But they'll come around and realize that they can't live without each other. It's only a matter of time."

Jazmine listened intently to her friend as her best friend just stared. After a few seconds, Cindy sighed.

"Yeah, I guess you right. Aye nigga, since when were you the Love Guru." She joked. Stacia and Jazmine laughed.

"Girl, you know me." She playfully boasted. All the laughter erupting from the girls caused the boys to look in their direction. Riley and Caesar decided to call a quits to the game a few minutes ago, so they were no longer unaware of their surroundings.

"Hey, what ya'll talkin' about?" Riley nosily asked. Stacia looked at him and grinned sweetly.

"Just girl stuff, baby." She replied. Riley wasn't convinced at all, but just as he was about to interrogate her, the doorbell rang.

"FOOD!" Cindy yelled, causing everyone to pause and stare at her. "Uhh…" She began as the silence became awkward. After a few seconds, laughter erupted from all of her friends and her cheeks grew red.

"Yo' fat ass." Riley joked, still laughing. Cindy eventually laughed with them as Caesar rose up from the floor to answer the door.

The impatient person behind the door rang the doorbell once again, causing Caesar to smirk as he maneuvered closer to the door. "Yeah, yeah, I'm comin'." He simply yelled. Once he opened the door, however, he happened to find a short, beautiful pizza _woman_ standing there looking pissed off. Caesar smirked again, that is until he realized something.

He knew this person.

"Briana?" He asked in disbelief. He could've sworn that an uppity girl like her would work somewhere more…well, he just didn't expect her to be a _pizza deliverer_. She sucked her teeth in annoyance and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Just get your big ass order and give me the damn money." She knowingly snarled in a harsh tone. She knew Caesar was far too nice to respond to a female in such a negative manner, but what she didn't know was that his best friend, the white girl with the ethnic vocabulary, happened to walk up behind him and hear the entire thing.

"Bitch, they pay you to talk to yo' customers like that?" Cindy retorted in a tone that meant she was _definitely_, not playing. Briana nearly jumped at the sudden voice, but her facial expression didn't change. Just then, Cindy decided to move from behind Caesar so the girl could see her, and once the girl saw her, she was officially intimidated. Caesar just smirked at the little display in front of him.

Briana knew Cindy could beat her ass. She witnessed the girl nearly send that buff nigga Juve to the hospital back in 6th grade. Well, Cindy was in 6th grade, but Briana was in the 8th.

So Heaven only knew how much Cindy's fighting skills had improved.

Though Briana was still struck with fear, she tried to play it off by rolling her eyes and opening up one of the pizza bags. In the first one was two large pizzas, so she took those out first, handing both of them to Caesar. She was trying hard not to look in Cindy's direction as she opened the second bag.

"Aye Huey, Riley, get these pizzas, yo. We still need to bring everything else in." Cindy threw her head back and yelled to the boys. In a matter of seconds, Huey and Riley showed up a little annoyed.

As Huey saw the one person he didn't expect to see, his annoyance grew.

Briana noticed the boy's expression and once the others weren't looking, she flashed him a smile. Huey's eyebrow went up and it seemed as if he was about to speak until…

"Aye nigga, yo' lazy ass ain't bout to leave _me_ hangin'! Get yo' damn veggie pizza." Riley demanded , holding the veggie pizza and the hot wings. The others were already heading to the living room. Cindy had the Coke and Caesar had the two large pizzas. Huey just rolled his eyes and took his pizza from his younger sibling. After Riley turned to go back to the living room, Huey was about to do the same, but the girl's voice stopped him.

"Veggie pizza? That's so you, Huey." She softly said in a weird, girly voice. No one was used to her acting like _that_, so Huey was a little thrown off.

But not only by that.

He didn't even know this girl! Who the hell is she to say 'That's so you, Huey.'? The only time he's really noticed her presence is when she 'accidently' touched his butt in the gym earlier. He knew she was stuck up, but that's all he knew about her. So why does she feel like she could just say something like that as if they were friends? He didn't even know her _name_!

Now, Huey was not exactly the nicest person, so if this girl expected him to laugh and giggle at her stupid attempts to talk to him, she was in for a world of hurt. He didn't exactly want to come off as rude to her though. I mean, she _did_ apologize for what she did earlier, and she _said_ it was an accident. And she hasn't been rude to him, so why would he be mean to her?

Oh yeah, that's right. He's Huey Freeman.

But still…he felt like it would be unfair to respond to her sudden outburst in a harsh manner, so he responded in the nicest way he possibly could.

"And you are…?"

Well, I said the nicest way he possibly could, not the nicest way _possible_.

Briana fought the urge to roll her eyes and smiled at the cute hair boy in front of her. "I'm Briana." She answered, beaming excitedly. At her retarded response, Huey rolled his eyes.

"Yeah," He replied in an uncaring way, "Well, okay _Briana_."

Briana's smile began to decrease as she saw his bored expression.

"Nice chat, but I'm hungry, so…"

"Oh, sorry. I guess I should be going then." Briana responded in yet another false apologetic look.

"I guess so." Huey replied bluntly before closing the door, leaving the slightly distraught young women on the porch. Briana glared at the door in response, wishing to burn the house down with her eyes.

Uh, craazzyyy!

The little Blasian looked as if she was about to cry, but she held it in as she grabbed the pizza bags and headed to the car.

"One day, Huey Freeman. One day." She silently announced to no one in particular before opening the car door.

* * *

"Nigga, please. I know you good at basketball, but you never was better than me, Riley." Cindy declared as her and Riley argued, standing up behind the sofa. Riley made a quick dash to his home to change into his basketball shorts and his white wife beater about ten minutes ago as Cindy did the same, only instead of a wife beater, she had on a black tee.

The others were in different sections of the house. Jazmine and Huey were talking in the hallway, while Stacia was helping Caesar pick an outfit for the homecoming dance upstairs.

Riley scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Bit-I mean, girl please." He quickly corrected himself before Stacia heard him. "We ain't played against each other since, what, the 8th grade?"

Cindy did her crazy laugh and rolled her eyes. "Oh, I think we all know why you decided to stop playin' against me."

Riley rose up that 'Huey eyebrow'. "Uh, yeah, because my Granddad made me quit playin' and had me cuttin' the grass every fuckin' month. Then, I just forgot about playin'."

Cindy shook her head rapidly, grinning from ear to ear. "Naw, nigga. You was scared."

"What!" Riley replied in a loud boyish shriek. Cindy just laughed at him.

"C'mon, Riley. You know damn well you stopped playin' 'cause you couldn't take bein' beat by no girl." She teased. At that, Riley groaned and shook his head.

"Girl, PLEASE! If I really wanted to beat you, I would've done so a long ass time ago. You was a _girl_. I won't about to have yo' ass cryin' and runnin' to yo' mama over a lil' ass game." He half-lied. While he really didn't want that to happen, he also didn't want Cindy to beat him, so rather than letting her win, he was trying his damndest.

Cindy rolled her eyes and turned around to head to the backyard. "C'mon." She ordered.

"What?"

"Nigga, since you basically sayin' you let me win, play me for real. No bullshit." She challenged him.

Riley was a bit hesitant at first, but he was not about to go out like no punk. "Aiight, fine. But you gon' be sorry." He warned before following her outside.

Meanwhile, Huey and Jazmine went upstairs to meet up with Stacia and Caesar. As the opened the door to Caesar's room, they found him with his knees on the ground and his forehead on the bed as if he was frustrated. They looked to the right to find Stacia all up in Caesar's closet.

"Man, you don't got no good dress clothes up in here. We gon' have to go to the store." Stacia declared and when she turned around, she found Jazmine and Huey looking at her. She smiled and waved to them and then walked over to Caesar to lift him up off the ground.

"Damn it, Stacia. I'm tired of this. You can go, but I'll stay here." Caesar replied in a more than tired voice. Stacia just rolled her eyes.

"Nigga, that ain't nothin' but the itis talkin'. That's what you get for eatin' so much." She said, waving her hand in the air.

"Stacia, please."

"No! C'mon. No friend of mine is gon' be goin' to homecoming lookin' raggedy." She finalized in a motherly fashion. As she fiercely grabbed Caesar's arm, earning a chuckle from Jazmine, she asked the couple if they wanted to go with them. And they agreed.

"Wait a minute," Stacia started, "Where's Riley?"

"And Cindy?" Caesar added.

"They're outside playing basketball." Jazmine answered. The other two friends just nodded before Stacia grabbed her keys.

* * *

Riley and Cindy were playing 21 on the court for the last time. So far, they've played five games and each of them had won two of them. This last game would determine who the true victor was.

By the looks of it, Riley looked like he was winning. Not by much though. He was at 20 points whereas Cindy was at 19. Both of them just needed one shot in order to win the game.

Dribbling the ball, Riley smirked at his opponent and did a few tricks. "Cindy, I'd hate to see you lose, but I like to see me win even more." He boasted. Cindy rolled his eyes in slight irritation. She had to admit, Riley improved a lot since his childhood. Hmm, maybe he was holding it back.

"Whateva, just shoot the damn ball before I steal it from you!" She threatened him, causing him to smirk and raise an eyebrow.

"So, you mad?"

"Shut up." She replied in a tired voice before charging towards Riley, but he was too quick for her as he shook her and ran right past her. Right before she could catch up to him, he shot the ball into the hoop and called it a game.

"That's game, baby! I win!" He cheered while Cindy groaned.

"Whateva. But yo, I'm about to head home. Let the others know I'm gone." Cindy told him as he nodded. "Oh yeah, and you might wanna go home to take a shower. You lookin' all sweaty and shit. Not attractive." She joked. Riley just laughed at her.

"Please, I got a girl. I ain't tryna impress nobody but her." He said smiling. Cindy smiled back but her eyes obtained a hidden sadness in them.

"Yeah, well I'll see you later, Riley." She finally said before walking through the house to go home through the front.

"Aiight, see ya C-Murph." He joked, calling her by her childhood nickname. Cindy laughed and shook her head and within seconds she was gone.

Cindy was exhausted. After the Pep Rally, the great big pizza feast and all that running around on the court, a nice long hot shower would do her some good. As she walked down the street, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. Normally, she'd hop in the car with the Freemans or Jazmine, but they were gone and she really needed to get home. She only walked down the street once, but she was with the girls, not by herself.

And don't you all go and call Cindy a punk. She may be a thug but she's still a vulnerable teenager walking down the streets in the late evening. So it'd be natural for her to feel some type of way.

As she continued to walk, she could've sworn she heard some footsteps walking behind her. She stopped walking and quickly turned around to find…no one. She looked around and noticed nothing but the eerie silence. Rolling her eyes, she continued to walk forward. "Man, whateva. Maybe I'm just imagini-AHHH!"

Well she most certainly _wasn't_ imagining anything, for at that moment, someone held a mean grip around her throat. She tried her hardest to loosen out of the grip, but she found it impossible, as the mysterious figure continued to strangle her.

At that moment, she felt it. She felt the tears pouring out of her eye sockets involuntarily. This dude, or girl, was chocking her _that_ hard. Just what did she do to deserve this? She only talked to the people in her circle and she hasn't been mean to the people who didn't deserve it for over five years now. What was going on? Who was this person?

She tried again to make more noises, attempting to talk, scream, do _something_! But the potential killer was not letting go, and Cindy was beginning to lose consciousness.

_No! Cindy, wake up! _

She mentally scolded herself to stay awake, but soon her brain functioning began to falter as she slipped away into unconsciousness, but right before she was completely out of it, she heard someone very familiar call her name.

_Cindy!_

* * *

NO! LIVE CINDY LIVE! I wonder what's gonna happen next!

I could take a few suggestions lol. I already have an idea, but I'd love to hear from you. So please review & thanks in advance!


	9. Awaiting

Hey guys. Heads up, this chapter is kinda sad...:/

But don't you worrry though (Rollo Goodlove voice), you won't hate me...for long lol. But yeah,

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE BOONDOCKS!

And Shoutouts to Miss Ace Thank You, MissG2020, jayjai107, & the newest one, misseylady! (girl I know how ya feel. computers are stupid lol. & this chapter has a lot of Riley, so don't worry!)

Ya'll are the sweetest! :) Thanks for the rev

But anyways, here's the storryy!

* * *

CHAPTER 9: AWAITING

"CINDY!" shouted a very exhausted Riley Freeman as he saw his best friend at the hands of some stranger. As the stranger turned around to spot him, he ran away so fast that Riley had to wonder if he hadn't imagined the person. But as he spotted his best friend on the ground, motionless, he knew he wasn't. This was as real as ever.

Running up to her, ignoring the annoying cramps he'd developed from playing basketball for so long, he called to her again to make sure she could hear him. And of course, she couldn't. She was knocked out cold.

When he finally reached her, his eyes, along with his mind, was full of rage. He knew she wasn't dead, but her lifeless body made it _seem _as if she was and that just made him angrier.

Just who the hell does this person think they are? They're not getting away with this. He was gonna find out who it was and hopefully, he'd have to kill them. There was just no way he'd let some potential killer go. No way in hell.

He knew that if he didn't stop looking at her, he'd go crazy sooner or later. He knew he was being irrational as well, but he didn't care.

_You fuckin' wit' my niggas, you fuckin' wit' all of us. _Riley thought, as he picked his best friend up and carried her over his left shoulder. Using his right hand, he reached his back pocket to pull out his cell phone and called Huey.

After a few rings, his brother finally picked up.

"_Hello?"_

"Huey. Yo, I'm headin' to the hospital."

"_Umm, why?"_

Riley paused for a second, trying to control himself from taking his anger out on his brother.

"'Cause some nigga, or _bitch_, did somethin' to her." He growled involuntarily. On the other side of the phone, Huey's eyebrows raised in concern.

"_Riley, what did they do?"_

And that's where he lost it.

"SOME BITCH MADE ASS NIGGA CHOKED THE FUCK OUTTA HER, AND I WAS TOO FAR AWAY TO DO ANYTHING! BY THE TIME I GOT TO HER THE NIGGA RAN OFF LIKE THE LIL' BITCH I KNEW HE WAS AND CINDY WAS ON THE FLOOR UNCONSCIOUS AND NOW I'M TRYNA GET HER TO THE HOSPITAL WIT' NO FUCKIN' CAR AND I'M TIRED AS HELL AND, AND-"

"_RILEY!"_ Huey yelled, silencing his brother's panic mode. _"Calm down and be rational. Look, we're leavin' the store now. So just chill and call the…on second thought, take her to our house. I'll be there within five minutes."_

Both of them knew the police would not make it to their neighborhood in time. Though their neighborhood usually wasn't a bad one, the police knew black people were there, and they weren't taking any chances. So it'd be better if Huey picked them up.

"Look man, I'm tryna be calm but…" Riley started, trying to hold back the tears. His voice sounded thick and he rolled his eyes as he was well aware of it. "…man, this my homie. I'm supposed to protect her, man. We been friends since elementary. To see her like this is just…" He didn't finish his statement. He just shook his head and continued walking down the path, ignoring the silent tears coming down on his cheeks.

"_Riley." _His brother responded in a sympathetic voice. _"I'm comin' okay. Just hold on. She'll be fine."_ On the other side, Riley could vaguely hear Jazmine ask _"Who's that?"_

"_It's Riley."_ Huey said, backing away from the phone a bit. _"We gotta go. Tell Stacia and Caesar to come on or I'm leavin' them. It's an emergency."_

"Nigga, don't leave my girl." Riley warned, his normal tone coming back to life. "Just, hurry up aiight."

Huey nodded, almost forgetting that Riley couldn't see him. _"I'm on the way."_

* * *

"Yes?" The impatient woman behind the glass inquired with a bored expression. The entire crew, minus an unconscious Cindy, glared at the woman. This was _definitely _not the time to play.

"My friend here is unconscious. Could you _please_ get her a doctor?" Caesar asked in a surprisingly calm tone. This was Cindy, the girl he's had his eye on for a while. The crew thought he'd be more distraught than anyone.

Maybe he was, but he had to be strong.

The woman rolled her eyes and sarcastically snorted. "Well, you _are_ at a doctor's office. So I'll see what I can do." She retorted sarcastically and ended with yet another stupid sarcastic snort.

At that, Stacia wanted to whoop her ass.

"Bitch, we don't got no TIME for your stupid attitude problem! Either let my friend in, or _I'll _have yo ass admitted." Stacia threatened in a tone that caused some of her friends to back away from her.

Hey! It was kinda scary, alright?

The woman behind the counter gulped before walking in the back to let the doctor know what was going on. Within minutes…

"Umm, someone wanted to admit an unconscious woman?" A nurse timidly asked, slipping half of her body through the door. The crew nodded in agreement as the nurse, along with a few others, walked through the door hurriedly with a hospital bed for Cindy to lie on.

"Name?" One of the nurses asked the crew in haste.

"Cindy McPhearson." Riley replied in a sad tone, his voice cracking a bit. The crew looked at him for a second and everyone had sympathetic looks on their faces. Riley had been silently crying since they picked him up, and of course it was understandable. He actually _witnessed_ this. If it were Jazmine or Stacia, they would've been sobbing loudly and uncontrollably, so who the hell could blame him for not controlling his emotions at the moment?

"Cindy McPhearson, got it." The nurse noted and paused before looking back at the crew. "McPhearson? Isn't her dad that multi-millionaire who works with Ed Wuncler?" She asked. Huey rolled his eyes impatiently.

"Could you just get her some help?" He responded, causing the nurse to nod and leave with Cindy and the other nurses. Once they left, the crew sighed and took their seats in the waiting room.

"Man." Caesar softly let out. "Who the hell is after _her_?" Everyone shrugged, but Riley. Riley, sitting in between Stacia and Huey, had his elbows on his knees, covering his face with his hands.

_This had to be a dream._

Stacia stared at him for a good minute before resting her hand on his shoulder. Riley tensed up at the sudden touch, but relaxed a bit as he realized who it was. He never looked up though.

Stacia felt like she was going to cry herself. Never had she seen her boyfriend look so sad. It was a sight she hoped she'd never see again. He was always the one who knew how to control his feelings. I mean, she knew it wasn't healthy to harbor emotions, but, she didn't want to _witness_ it.

As she looked over to the rest of her friends, she saw Huey look at his brother with sad eyes. It wasn't as if he wasn't sad about Cindy, but just like Stacia, he hated to see his brother so down like that. It was…_odd_. The last time he'd seen Riley like that is when their parents died, and he didn't even know if Riley remembered it. He was only three at the time, but Huey would never forget that day.

Stacia looked past him towards Jazmine and saw the girl near tears. It was actually surprising to see Jazmine not cry over something like this, yet. She expected her to bawl her eyes out, but she could see the girl trying to tough it out.

As she looked at Caesar, she couldn't help it. The tears finally drowned her cheeks and her upper lip. She didn't even bother to wipe them away.

Caesar was biting his lip trying hard not to punch a wall, or someone, for what happened to Cindy. The look in his eyes that Stacia saw was mixed with both sadness and fury. It was weird. No one had ever seen Caesar that mad, besides Huey. He was always the happy one. He always looked on the brighter side of things.

But let's face it, what's the bright side of _this_ outcome?

Cindy could be in coma for weeks, or months…

Or she could be dead.

But no one wanted to think about _that_. They just wanted their crazy, goofy, fun-loving, ethnic acting friend back. It was only a matter of time before the results came back.

After what seemed like forever, one of the nurses came back with a clipboard and a few papers. She politely walked into the room, giving the crew a sympathetic smile, only receiving one from Jazmine.

"Um," she started, as Riley finally lifted his head up, his face covered with dried tears. "We have the results for a Ms. Cindy McPhearson." Stacia nodded. "And uh, I'm sorry, but-"

"NO!" Yelled both Riley and Caesar as everyone else looked like they were about to cry, well Jazmine already did, but Stacia and Huey weren't too far behind.

"Man, don't tell me she…she…" Riley started, but he couldn't even say the word. The nurse shook her head quickly, finally understanding that they misunderstood what she was trying to say.

"No-No! She's not dead." She started as everyone let out a sigh of relief. The nurse grew nervous as she knew that what she was about to say wasn't going to make the situation any better. "And she isn't in a coma…but she has a slight case of amnesia." She finally ended, giving the group another sympathetic look.

"What?" Riley asked in disbelief, as if he didn't know. The nurse slowly nodded, trying not to upset the crew any further.

"I'm sorry, but she's been out for quite some time, and the unconsciousness did quite some damage to her head." She stated, not really wanting to say that, but it was her job to tell nothing but the truth. "Again, I'm sorry…and I know that what I say isn't going to make things seem better, but she will get better, eventually. Thankfully her memory loss isn't permanent." The nurse ended with a nervous smile, trying to make them feel better.

Of course, it didn't.

"Ugh!" Jazmine groaned softly, leaning her head on Huey's shoulder as she covered her face with her hands. Huey just shook his head. This was sad. The girl wouldn't even remember the Pep Rally, or the fact that she's supposed to be going to Homecoming tomorrow.

All because some psycho couldn't keep their hands to themselves.

"Well, thanks anyways." Caesar sadly responded to the nurse as she nodded.

Riley couldn't take it anymore.

He suddenly stood up, causing Stacia to quickly look his direction. "Baby, where you goin'?"

"To see my best friend." He replied in a shocking clear voice without hesitation. The nurse looked hesitant though.

"Um, sir, you can't go back there just yet." She responded in a timid voice. The glare he sent to her caused her to shrink back.

"Oh yeah? Watch me." He responded in a low tone. The nurse looked scared as she backed away from him and left the scene to go to the back.

Huey gently pulled Jazmine off his shoulder and hastily walked over to his brother. "Aye. Riley, calm down."

"Nigga, don't tell me to calm down." He snapped at him. "My best friend done turned to a vegetable all because of some stupid nigga who think it's okay to put they hands on whoever they want." And there they were. The tears came flooding out of his sockets as he neared closer to the door, but Huey gently grabbed his arm, stopping him. He didn't know why he stopped, but he did.

"C'mon man. We all wanna see her, but if the nurse says we can't see her right now, then we can't see her right now. We can wait a few hours." He tried reasoning with his little brother, but Riley shook his head, the tears still comin' down.

"No, nigga! You just don't get it!" he began. "I saw the whole thing! I saw the nigga walk up behind her. I mean, I ain't think he was gon' do anything, but I sure as hell ain't walk much faster when I saw him chokin' her like that. I mean, I was too shocked, but man, I could've gotten over that shit and ran as fast as I could to that nigga and beat his ass! How the fuck this nigga gon' do that to my friend, man?" His voice had gotten so thick by now that he was almost incoherent, but not quite. "She a down ass bitch! Other than Stacia, she the only girl who been by my side since I first met her! I'll never forgive _anybody _for messin' wit' her man! That's my nigga!" And right after he said that, Huey couldn't help but hug his little brother. He knew he needed it. They both needed it really.

And as soon as the brothers embraced, Riley broke down. He buried his head into Huey's shoulder and cried his eyes out. He didn't care who was around. He didn't care who heard him. All he cared about right now was the well being of the people he loved.

Once the girls and Caesar saw the display, it broke their hearts.

Caesar looked over to the girls and saw the huge empty space between them where Huey and Riley once sat. He knew they needed someone to console them right now. Both girls were crying so hard that their bottom lips were trembling.

He silently got up from his chair and grabbed Jazmine's hand. She looked up at him with sad eyes as he gestured for her to get up. She obediently did so as he motioned for Stacia to arise as well. As soon as she got up, she walked over to Caesar and took his hand as well. The three of them just stared at each other, waiting for something to happen.

It wasn't long before Jazmine suddenly wrapped her left arm around Caesar's shoulders, and did the same to Stacia with her right. A second later Caesar followed her motion, and then Stacia. They all embraced in a circle, healing each other with love and affection. They needed this. They all needed this.

Cindy may have been alive, but it sure as hell didn't feel like it.

She wasn't herself. She didn't know how to _be_ herself. She couldn't remember a thing.

They all hoped that her memory loss _was_ temporary, because they wouldn't even know how to function without that girl around.

* * *

"My baby girl. I can't believe this." Cried a distraught Lauren McPhearson as Charles McPhearson lovingly wrapped his arms around her in an embrace. By now, everyone was in the waiting room: Huey, Jazmine, Riley, Stacia, Caesar, Granddad, Mr. and Mrs. McPhearson, Caesar's Aunt Joan, Tom, Sarah and even Ed Wuncler the third and Gin Rummy.

The crew sat in the seats they sat in earlier as the McPhearsons embraced, Granddad paced back and forth and Aunt Joan, Tom and Sarah sat on the opposite side of the room.

Riley, Stacia, and Jazmine were all dried out. They couldn't cry anymore. Caesar and Huey never did cry in the first place, but their expressions were just like the others.

Dead.

This was devastating. And to see Cindy's parents bawling out of control definitely didn't help the situation at all.

Granddad was still trying to figure out who would hurt this cutie pie. She may have had a mouth on her, but she was a good kid. She didn't deserve this.

Aunt Joan's thoughts were just like Granddad's. She even considered the girl family to her. It just wasn't fair what that stranger did to her.

Tom and Sarah were actually crying. Everyone knew Tom was a punk, but for once, they didn't even clown him for his sensitivity. It was all too much for them to handle. Sarah, like Jazmine did before, had her head on Tom's shoulder, covering her visage with her hands.

And Ed and Rummy were pissed the hell off. Cindy was their lil' nigga from back when. They used to get into all kinds of mischief and she was the only girl who was gangsta enough to hang with them. They made a promise before they entered the hospital that the nigga who did this to her was gonna pay.

Oh, they were _definitely _gonna pay.

"That poor child." Aunt Joan suddenly stated in a soft tone. She shook her head as she looked down at the ground. Caesar looked up at his aunt as he heard her speak and stared at her.

He sure hoped that this incident was just a message from God, teaching them to tell their loved ones just how much they loved them before they were gone.

Mentally and physically.

He thought about it. He never did tell his Aunt Joan how much he loved her. Of course he's said "I love you" before he left to go to school, work, or whatever, but he never actually gave her a heart to heart notion that he loved her. There was no doubt in his mind that she knew he did, but he had to tell her anyways.

He just had to. He was not about to let another day go by without telling the people that he loved that he loved them.

"Aunt Joan." He started, causing all eyes to look in his direction. He didn't care about that. He didn't care who saw. "I love you, and I mean that. I really do." He genuinely stated, causing some of the adults to smile, including his aunt's.

"I love you too, sweetie." she responded in a sweet tone getting up to walk over to him. Caesar got up as well, walking into her embrace. His friends just watched in admiration as they looked at their family members.

"Mommy…Daddy…I love you guys." Jazmine stated before getting up and walking over to their side, hugging them as well.

Riley and Huey looked at each other before looking at Granddad. They didn't necessarily think that Granddad would buy into this lovey dovey crap, but as they saw his eyes, they knew he didn't mind.

At the moment.

"Uh, Granddad." Riley started, but before he could finish, Granddad started talking.

"Come here, boys." He demanded in a surprisingly sweet voice. At that, the brothers stood up and walked into their Granddad's loving arms.

Stacia looked all around to find that her parents weren't there.

Like _that_ was a surprise. They were _always _busy. They didn't even bother to listen to her when she tried to tell them of the emergency on the phone. It went a little something like this.

"_Mom!"_

"_Yes, honey."_

"_Look, it's an emergency. Could you please try to-"_

"_Oh, I'm sorry, honey. I'm busy right now. I can't go anywhere. Try asking your father."_

"_But _mom_!"_

"_Sorry, honey. Bye." Click. _

_Stacia groaned and looked through her contacts to reach her father. When she finally did…_

_She got a busy tone. Again…again...and again._

_She finally let out an exasperated sigh and hung up. It was whatever. They never noticed her, so why start now?_

The McPhearsons, along with Ed and Rummy, saw the girl all alone, with on one to embrace her.

Well of course Ed and Rummy weren't going to do it. They may have been upset, but they won't _that_ upset.

Mrs. McPhearson kindly walked over to Stacia, extending her hand. Stacia, not expecting this at all, looked up at her in shock. Cindy's mother gave her a small smile.

"It's alright, honey. I don't bite." She joked as Stacia finally took her hand and hugged the woman. At first, the hug was awkward, but as she became accustomed to it, she hugged her with all of her might. From behind, Mr. McPhearson smiled.

Within a few minutes, the nurse walked through the door with a half-pleasant, half-apologetic smile. She noticed the scene in front of her, but as much as she didn't want to interrupt it, she thought that they'd _really_ want to hear about the news.

She cleared her throat patiently as everyone's head turned towards her direction. "I think you all would like to hear this." She started. Suddenly, the entire waiting room ran right in front of her, desperate for answers as she damn near tripped over nothing from the sudden shock.

"Well." Granddad started, impatiently tapping his foot on the ground. "How is she?"

The nurse suddenly gave everyone a genuine smile. "She's doing pretty good, sir."

Now, _that_ was something to celebrate.

"How good?" Charles McPhearson couldn't help but ask, as a small smile began to form. This caused the nurse to smile even more.

"Well, Mr. McPhearson, we ran a few tests by her and couldn't help but notice that there was something there that wasn't there before." she started as everyone listened intently. She continued. "You see, earlier, on the right hemisphere of her membrane, we saw some serious damage. Her brain cells seemed to have been halfway depleted, which was the result of her amnesia." Cindy's parents nodded as the nurse went on. "But later, after we ran a few more tests, we couldn't help but notice that she had much more brain cells than she did earlier. So after we ran even _more_ tests on her, we came to the conclusion that Cindy McPhearson no longer has amnesia." She explained to the entire group, with another genuine smile.

Everyone's eyes grew ten times their regular size.

Granddad smiled happily and continued to stare at the nurse in surprise.

Jazmine looked at Huey, as Huey looked at Jazmine

Stacia looked at Riley, as Riley looked at Stacia

Caesar looked at Aunt Joan, as Aunt Joan looked at Caesar.

Tom looked at Sarah, as Sarah looked at Tom.

Ed looked at Rummy, as Rummy looked at Ed.

Lauren looked at Charles, as Charles looked at Lauren.

And all at once…

"Yes!" Jazmine squealed as she hugged Huey. Huey hugged her back, smiling harder than he's ever smiled in his entire life. "I guess there _is_ a God." Huey softly said, looking up towards the ceiling.

"Oh, man!" Riley exclaimed, hugging Stacia as Stacia squealed as well.

Caesar didn't say a word as he laughed in excitement, hugging his aunt who laughed as well.

"Thank ya, Jesus!" Granddad shouted to the heavens before singing in his 'good food' tone.

Sarah and Tom hugged each other grinning happily and crying happy tears.

"My baby's alright! My baby's alright!" Lauren McPhearson bellowed, hugging her husband with all her might as he laughed joyously.

"I knew it! My nigga a warrior!" Ed yelled, dapping Rummy up happily. Rummy grinned.

"Hell yeah she a warrior, nigga. Why you think she used to hang with us?" Rummy responded.

No one even answered him. They were just so consumed in their happiness.

The nurse continued to smile as she watched to atmosphere switch from sadness to joy. She loved to please people with good news.

"Would you all like to see her?" She asked and jumped abruptly as the entire room ran past her down the hall.

There was no way they were going to last another minute away from that girl.

* * *

AWW! :) Sweet ending, huh?

Please review! I know ya'll can't wait to see Cindy wide awake lol. Well...ME NEITHER! *smiles like an idiot*


	10. Right Here

Hey guys! I couldn't login for some reason :/ I meant to post this chapter up earlier.

And I also wanna mention that this chapter isn't very long. Sorry, but I have reasons for that...more dramatic effect lol. I'm currently working on chapter 11, so it'll probably be posted tomorrow.

So anyways, Shoutouts to you amazing reviewers!

MissG2020, jayjai107, Miss Ace Thank You, misseylady & then newest one, Youngkong313! Man, it just makes me feel so much better to know that I get a new reviewer almost every chapter! xD

But thanks guys!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE BOONDOCKS DAMN IT!

Now that that's out the way, enjoy! :)

* * *

CHAPTER 10: RIGHT HERE

_Man this is some bullshit. _

_Someone practically killed me, I'm in a hospital, I probably won't be goin' to homecoming, this damn IV is stuck in my arm, and worst of all…_

_THERE'S _NOTHING _ON TV! This place should be able to at least provide some decent cable!_

Cindy McPhearson was lying on the hospital bed trying desperately to find something to watch. This was ridiculous! The TV only had twenty stations and they only showed the news, some gay ass Care Bear crap, and soap operas. What a load of crap.

As she continued to flip through channels, she was shocked for a second to see her room fill up so quickly by many familiar faces: Huey, Jazmine, Riley, Stacia, Caesar, Aunt Joan, Granddad, Tom, Sarah, Ed, Rummy and her parents.

Before she could even begin to talk…

"Cindy!" They all squealed, but Huey, Caesar, Riley, Granddad, and the two supposed 'criminal masterminds'. So basically, all the girls, plus Tom, squealed. Granddad, Ed, Rummy, Riley and Caesar grinned as Huey just looked on with an emotionless look.

This was his friend, but he couldn't help but display his infamous expression of boredom. Cindy was okay now, so he didn't need to get all excited for no reason. She was back to normal. Plus, she knew he cared for her, because after all…he was there.

All six hours.

"Hey…" Cindy replied in a timid, awkward tone.

"Honey, we were so worried about you." Her father announced, with a few nods from everyone else, confirming his statement. "The doctor said you were going to have amnesia, but something happened, we don't know what, but thank God you're alright."

"And we just want to say that even though we're not always available when you want us to be, we still love you very much. We never stop thinking about you." Her mother added, tears beginning to form. "Baby, you don't know how devastated I was when I heard about you. I shut everything and everyone down just to come down here to see you, and when the nurse said that I couldn't see you yet, I was dying inside." The tears were definitely falling now, but not that many. She didn't want her daughter to see her like that. "But, I'm glad you're okay." She ended, walking up to Cindy and kissing her on her forehead.

Cindy looked up at her mother, her father, and everyone else, confused. All she knew was that she was being choked, and the next thing, she was in a hospital with an IV in her arm. The doctor didn't tell her about the amnesia part. She didn't tell her that her being in the hospital caused a great scare to her family and her friends. This just made her feel all the more awkward.

"I love you too, mom." She replied and as she looked at her dad, she said the same thing to him. "But, really, what's goin' on here? Amnesia? I was about to have amnesia?" She asked everyone, still not believing it.

"Yeah." Jazmine started, walking up to her best friend's right side. Huey followed her, just as the rest of the crew did. The rest of the adults just stood in front of the bed while Cindy's parents were still on her left side. "You actually, _did_ have amnesia, but you were sleeping." Jazmine continued, taking her friend's hand and squeezing it. "Cindy, we were lost out there. We thought we lost _you_." She added with a small voice. Cindy thought she was about to cry, but she didn't.

"B-but I'm okay, now." Cindy stated, trying to brighten everyone's moods.

"Yeah, you are aren't you?" Stacia replied with a genuine smile. Cindy smiled back before looking past her to Riley.

"Now, what you so quiet for?" Cindy joked. Riley grinned and took Jazmine's place.

"Yeah, well. What am I supposed to say?" he joked back. Cindy rolled her eyes and smiled sweetly.

"Say something." She told him.

"Yeah, Riley. Say something." Stacia replied, smiling. "You were the one who saved her."

Cindy's eyes grew as wide as saucers as she heard what Stacia just said. "Saved…me?" She asked, unsure of what else to say. Riley's cheeks grew pink as he rolled his eyes. Stacia and Jazmine just giggled at him as everyone in the room, but Huey and the criminals, smiled.

"Hey, it's nothing. I saw what happened." He started, his eyes obtaining a hint of red in it as he recalled what had happened earlier. "And, I called Huey and he picked us up and took you here." He added, trying to get off of that.

Huey smirked as he looked at his brother trying to act like this didn't affect him. Riley was _always_ the one to brag about any and everything, so it was rare to see him being modest. It was nice.

Weird, but nice.

"Oh, stop it!" Stacia half-argued with him, slightly punching him in the arm. Riley just shrugged.

"What, you expect me to keep her on the ground?" He asked, his cheeks still colored. Stacia just giggled and kissed his cheek.

"Just teasing, babe. But Cin," she directed her attention to Cindy. "I have to get home. It's getting late. I'll be here with you tomorrow." She promised.

"Okay. I hope I get out tomorrow in time for the homecoming dance though." Cindy stated. At that, the crew looked at her with raised eyebrows, which confused her.

"Homecoming?" Caesar finally spoke up. "You were just admitted six hours ago and you think you're going to homecoming?"

Cindy opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She didn't really know what to say about that.

Jazmine noticed this and sighed. "Cindy, I don't think you're going to be able to go to homecoming because of what happened before this…miracle." She couldn't help but smile as she said the last word. "But, it's okay. You have a few more homecomings left to attend."

Cindy sighed as well. "But, I wanted to go to homecoming with _you_ guys." She pointed to Huey, Caesar and Jazmine. "This is ya'll last homecoming dance and I wanted to go all out for it." She said as she looked at all of her friends.

She waited for a response.

And waited.

And waited.

Until…

"Haaaaaa!" Caesar let out, causing Huey to snort and smile as the rest of the crew cracked up. To say Cindy was beyond confused was an understatement.

"Girl, we ain't goin' to homecoming!" Stacia announced as they continued to laugh. Cindy's eyes grew as she looked at her friends.

"B-but why?" Cindy questioned. Riley rolled his eyes and smirked. The laughter finally died down.

"Nigga, you lyin' in a hospital bed and you think yo' friends just gon' up and leave you like that?" Riley responded. "Hell naw. I say, fuck that homecoming dance-"

"Boy! Watch yo' mouth!" Granddad warned him. Riley just sighed.

"Well…we just ain't goin', aiight?" Said Riley, after his granddad's scold.

"Yeah, and besides, we can have a little party of our own when you get out." Jazmine added with a content smile. Cindy just laughed.

"Girl, you make it sound like I'm in jail." She joked. Jazmine playfully rolled her eyes and gave her a hug.

"I'll see you, tomorrow. It's late and I'd love to stay, but I'm tired." She half-joked. Cindy laughed again.

"Girl, I hear you." She told Jazmine. Huey finally spoke up.

"Uh, Jazmine, are you ridin' with me, or your parents?" He inquired.

"You." Jazmine decided, smiling a bit. Huey smiled back before looking at Cindy again. He rolled his eyes when he saw Cindy's amused facial expression.

"It's okay, playa. I see you." She joked and snickered as she saw Huey roll his eyes again. "So, I guess the Freeman brothers are leavin' me too, huh?

"Uh…me too." Caesar remarked, trying not to upset her. Cindy just smiled.

"Aww, okay. Fine then, goodbye traitors." She joked. "And give me a hug. I know ya'll dyin' to do it." She half-joked.

First came a smiling Jazmine (once again), then a smiling Stacia, next up, a smirking Riley, then a smiling Caesar…

And, can you believe it? Even Huey Freeman hugged the Caucasian young woman. He didn't necessarily like hugs, but he didn't mind it this time.

As all friends backed away, they exchanged goodbyes with Cindy and finally made their way out the door.

So now stood Cindy's parents, the guardians of the Freeman, Dubois, and Caesar household, and the two retired soldiers.

"Mom, Dad…" Cindy started. "Don't leave." She slightly begged in a soft voice. Ed and Rummy exchanged looks. They'd never seen the former gangster act like that before. As opposed to Ed, Rummy understood how Cindy felt.

She didn't want to admit it, but after what went on earlier, she was paranoid. She didn't want to be left alone. She didn't want another near death experience.

Her parents, as well as the other adults (excluding Ed), could see the look all over her face. As soon as her friends left, the happy left with them.

"Baby," Her mother started, with a promising smile. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying here until you get out, which should be within a day or two." Cindy nodded with relief as she hugged her mother once more.

Rummy and stupid Ed finally got up and walked over to the side of the bed where Cindy's friends stood.

"Aye," Ed began, "Don't worry 'bout a thing. We got you lil' homie." Rummy nodded in agreement.

Cindy's parents grimaced as they noticed Ed's hand on a strap from the side of his coat pocket.

"Mm hmm. I'ma let them niggas know, we packs the HEAT! I _dare_ a muthafucka to come up to me incorrect. I'ma be like 'blackoww, blackoww! Yippie kai yay muthafucka!' and them niggas gon' be like 'No, no! We sorry, man. We ain't mean to' and I'ma cut they asses off, right? I'ma be like 'Bitch, shut up!' and that's gon' be that." Ed stated while he whipped his gun around in the air. Mrs. McPhearson, Sarah and Aunt Joan shrieked as all of the adults, excluding Rummy, dropped to the ground. "And you know why? Cause I just don't give a fuck!" Ed finished, earning a glare from Rummy. Cindy just gave Ed a deadpanned look as the adults were still on the floor.

"Nigga, that's _my _line." He argued. "You don't just go and steal a muthafucka's line. The fuck wrong wit' you?"

As usual, Ed ignored his friend's argument and looked to the adults on the ground. "Why the hell ya'll on the ground?"

No one spoke.

"Aiight, well I'm out. Lil' homie," He said, pointing to Cindy. Cindy just chocked an eyebrow as if saying 'what?'. "We got you." He said before both he and Rummy walked through the doors.

No one got up until the footsteps of the criminals were gone.

"Those boys are crazy!" Granddad yelled and shook his head. Aunt Joan shook her head as well.

"Well, I'm about to head home. Cindy, sweetie, I'll see you real soon, okay?" She said, as she walked to Cindy and hugged her.

"Okay, bye Ms. Joan."

"Y'know, I'ma head out too." Granddad said as he walked to Cindy. Rather than a hug, he sweetly kissed Cindy on the forehead. "Now get better, baby girl. I'm not comin' back up in here. I hate hospitals." Granddad informed her. "But as soon as you get out, come to my house, and not a minute sooner." He instructed and smiled as he walked out with Caesar's aunt.

All through the rest of the night, Cindy's parents were true to their word. They didn't leave her side for a second. Even when they were hungry, they didn't budge. They just buzzed the nurses in to get them something to eat. Their baby girl almost died by the hands of an unknown stranger. What would they do with themselves if they left her side for a minute and returned to a motionless body? They wouldn't even know how to operate.

There was no just no way _possible_. They were not going anywhere.

* * *

_2:00 am_

As soon as Huey and Riley got home, around 10:00 pm, they walked upstairs without a word and went to sleep. The day was long and tiring and they just wanted to rest. The drive home wasn't much different either. Before dropping them off, Jazmine fell asleep in the car on the passenger side as Caesar and Stacia were knocked out in the backseat. Riley was barely up, but he managed to stay up, just as Huey did. It was a miracle he could drive without dozing off.

Just as Huey was in the middle of his dream, he felt a vibration on his arm and it took him a minute to realize it was his phone. Groaning a little, he rubbed his eyes and pulled the charger out of his phone before turning the screen on.

He had a text message.

It wasn't really surprising. Jazmine always did stuff like that, even before they were dating. She'd text him about anything: from something funny she remembered, to some sort of idea or plan for something, to her having horrible nightmares.

But as he silently read the text, his eyes widened in shock.

_Drop the mulatto and you'll save another one of your friends from getting hurt._

_Note: This is no joke, Huey Freeman. Sweet dreams, cutie._

_-Unknown-_

After finishing reading the text, Huey's eyebrows went up and he couldn't help but blurt out loud. "What the _hell_?"

Riley stirred a little on his side and Huey silently cursed himself for being too loud. Riley never woke up though, so Huey let out a breath of relief.

But really, who the hell _was_ this person? Obviously, well… hopefully, this was a _female_ who was so hell bent on breaking up him and Jazmine. In some sick, twisted way, this person wanted Huey, thinking that this was the appropriate way to do so. How dare she threaten his friends like that! How did she get his number? And who the hell was _she_ to wake him up at 2:00 in the morning!

Huey's mind rummaged through all kinds of questions with unknown answers, but he soon tried to erase the thoughts out of his mind. And it was hard, but he eventually let it go and went to sleep.

This was a problem that needed to be dealt with in the morning.

* * *

A text message, huh?

That's one hell of a cliffhanger lol. I'm really feelin' the suspense! Can't wait to see what happens next huh? Review! Please and thank youu!


	11. Got A Lead

"Rah Rah, Like a Dungeon Dragon!" Hey, Nicki Minaj, you got that from Busta Rhymes bitch. Stop tryna be original.

Oops, sorry about that lol. My brother was blastin' that shit in his room and it annoyed me. I had to voice my opinion somewhere, so...

Anyways...

Thanks to the wonderful reviewers!

Special thanks goin' out to Miss Ace Thank You (Paha! No, it's not Nicole lol), MissG2020 (She said thanks for the concern! xD), & jayjai107! Ya'll always show me love! *pounds chest and chucks deuces* Much appreciated!

And thanks to the latest reviewer ShellieB (and thanks for adding my story to your favorites!) Much love! Much love!

And man, i was gonna post this chapter sooner, but like everybody else, I couldn't do anything! Stupid internet. *kicks the monitor Huey style*

Uh...I guess I shouldn't have done that. lol. *tries to type with a cracked screen*

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE BOONDOCKS!

Enjoyyy! (This chapter's long.)

* * *

CHAPTER 11: GOT A LEAD

_11:00 am_

"Rise and shine, porcupine!" Cindy's square of a father shouted, waking Cindy up with a shriek of surprise. "Oh, sorry honey. Didn't mean to scare you." Normally, Cindy would've been annoyed by her dad's weirdness, but she didn't care right now. He just stayed with her all night and all morning and she was grateful for that.

"It's okay, Dad." She said, accepting his apology. "Are my friends here yet?"

Her dad shook his head. "Not yet, but they should be here any minute now." Cindy nodded, but as she looked around, she saw the absence of one important person.

"Hey, where's Mom?" She questioned.

"Oh, she just went to get you some clothes," he began. "You're leaving today."

On that note, Cindy's face lit up with excitement. "Really?"

"Yep." He replied with a wide grin.

"So, what time?"

"6:30."

"6:30?" Cindy asked, slightly disappointed. "Dang, that's late." Her dad's only response was an apologetic shrug.

The McPhearsons, minus Lauren, just watched the television (the news was the best choice), and after a while, Cindy was so bored that she began to drift off, that is until her mother walked through the door holding a McDonalds bag and a Nike duffle bag with Cindy's clothes inside. Behind her walked in a little girl with blue jeans, a pink hoodie and white Nike dunks. The little girl's hair was in two braids that stopped just below her shoulders. It was none other than Cindy's five year old cousin, Kayla.

Kayla loved to be around her oldest cousin and Cindy loved to be around her. Who knew Cindy "Fearsome" McPhearson liked children? I mean, she was family, but that meant nothing. Cindy loved kids. If she had enough time, she would work with her aunt at the local daycare center.

So when she saw her baby cousin walk in, she smiled at the little girl. Kayla, without hesitation, ran up to Cindy and tried jumping on the bed, but she couldn't reach it.

"I got her." Lauren said as she casually picked her niece up and placed her on Cindy's lap.

"Cindy!" The cute little girl exclaimed in a cute little voice. Cindy couldn't help but giggle at her cousin's cuteness.

"Hey, Kay." She responded and kissed the girl on the forehead.

"Guess what…" Kayla started, causing Cindy to shrug. "I got you something."

Cindy continued to smile. "Really? What is it?" Kayla put her hands behind her back in a shy manner.

"I can't tell you yet." She answered as Cindy playfully rolled her eyes.

"Then why'd you tell me you had me something if I can't have it now?"

"Because, you have to guess first. Don't you know anything?" Her cousin joked. But, no, she really did want her to guess though.

Cindy sighed.

"Fine." She reasoned with her. "Hmm…is it edible?"

"Edible? What's that?" the cute little girl asked in genuine confusion. Cindy shook her head as she just realized that most kids probably didn't know that word yet.

"It means, am I able to eat it." She explained as the girl did a soft 'oh'.

"Well, no." Kayla responded.

"Okay, can I walk it?"

"No."

"Can I play with it?"

"No."

"…Can I wear it?" Cindy asked, as she began to run out of options.

"…Yes." The girl stated in thought. Cindy smirked as she had an idea of what it was.

"Well, is it somethin' I can wear every day?"

"If you want to."

"Well, what is it?"

"Not yet."

"Kayla…" Cindy dragged out as she started to get tired of this 'game'. Kayla just shook her head wildly, the pigtails nearly hitting Cindy in the face.

"Not yet."

"Okay, Kayla I think that's enough. Your cousin needs some rest." Charles tried to pry Kayla off, but Cindy protested.

"No, Dad. It's cool. I just woke up like twenty minutes ago anyways." She said as Charles contemplated. After a minute he just shrugged and let them little game between the cousins continue.

* * *

"Cindy, Cinddyyyyyyy , Cindy, Ciiindy. Woo!" Granddad sang as he waltzed into the kitchen. He got a call from Charles McPhearson around noon and found out that Cindy was supposed to get out at 6:30, so he told Charles about his plan to cook Cindy and the crew a huge meal.

Which of course, was a half-lie.

Okay, it was a _total_ lie.

Granddad ain't cook a damn thing. If it wasn't for Chico (the dude from the 'The Itis' episode), this sort of thing wouldn't even exist. Not up in his house.

He was far too old to be cooking up a storm.

_But he could still go out on dates at Jay-Z concerts, though._

…Shut up, nobody asked you.

"How's it goin', Chico?" Granddad crudely teased before snickering. Yep, him and Riley were _definitely _related.

Chico just hid his annoyance with a smile and continued cooking. The food looked delicious by the way. He made some barbeque smothered ribs, hot barbeque wings (trust me, homemade ones are the _best_), homemade mac & cheese, corn on the cob, grilled hamburgers and hotdogs, fish…

Oh yeah, and some dry ass salad for Huey.

Now, I know what ya'll thinkin'. 'What the world? It's not even cookout season. Why the hell are they eatin' that?'

Ya wanna know why?

Ya _really_ wanna know why?

BECAUSE IT'S MY STORY, BITCH!

And Cindy likes that type of stuff, so…

"Mr. Freeman," Chico started off in a Hispanic accent, "How are the boys?" He couldn't help but ask. The last time he's seen them is before Huey went to high school, which was about five or four years ago.

"Terrible. I hate 'em both." Granddad responded with an uncaring tone. "Now, are you gonna keep yappin' in my ear wit' all that nonsense, or you gon' get to cookin'?"

Chico just sighed and continued his cooking as he threw some flour covered fish into the frying pan.

Minutes later, the crew, minus Cindy, bolted through the door. Riley and Caesar were drenched with sweat and the girls covered their noses in disgust. Huey was just…there.

The group of friends noticed something smelling good, except for Huey who found it revolting. They all headed to the living room to chill, and Riley just couldn't resist the urge to ask.

"Aye, Granddad? What you cookin' up in there?" He shouted as if the kitchen was a mile away. Granddad narrowed his eyebrows.

"Boy, hush. I'm right here. And I ain't cookin' a damn thing. Chico is."

"Chico?" Huey asked as he looked around to find no one but Granddad standing in the kitchen. "Where is he?"

Granddad rolled his eyes and waved his hand dismissively. "His lazy ass said somethin' about 'callin' to nature' or somethin'. Whateva, he just wanted to stop cookin'. I know how he do."

"Granddad, he probably said 'nature calls'," Huey noted, "meaning, he had to use to bathroom."

Granddad shrugged uncaringly. "Whateva, I just know his lazy ass betta wash his hands and get back to cookin'. I ain't payin' him for nothin'." He complained. Huey and Riley lifted their eyebrows as they looked at each other and then back at Granddad.

"Knowing you, you probably ain't payin' him at all." Riley replied, followed by snickering. Granddad just scoffed.

"Shut up, or I'll keep all of this for myself." He warned. The crew looked at the elderly man in shock at that warning.

"Wait…this is for us?" Huey asked in disgust.

The old man blew air out through his nose as he grew irritated really quickly. "Yo' tired ass salad ova there on the table." He pointed.

Huey rolled his eyes and decided that talking to his granddad at the moment was unnecessary. Riley didn't think so though.

"Granddad, you here from Cindy?" he questioned. Granddad shook his head as the sixteen year old scoffed in disappointment.

"Nope, but I heard from Charles and he said she was doin' fine and she'd be out at 6:30, so ya'll better be grateful that I planned this dinner for ya'll since ya'll ain't goin' nowhere tonight." He half-explained, and half-scolded. Riley didn't respond, he just diverted his attention to his attire and wrinkled his nose.

"Uh, I think I'ma go head and take a shower. Niggas gotta stay fresh, ya heard me?" He bellowed, not really expecting a response.

"Yeah, 'cause you smell like raw onions and corn chips." Stacia half-joked. "But let me know when you done freshening up." She told him as she discreetly shot him a lustful look. He gladly accepted it with a smile and walked away.

Thank God Granddad didn't notice it.

"And you," Stacia pointed to Caesar, changing her tone altogether. "You goin' next. Ya'll better hurry up, too. I'm tryna see my girl." She ordered as Caesar shrugged.

Within minutes, the sound of water was heard from the upstairs bathroom and at the same time, Chico walked out of the bathroom in the downstairs hallway. When he walked into the kitchen, he saw that Granddad's back was turned. He tried to quickly turn around, but Caesar purposely called him out.

"HEY CHICO!" he yelled with a sneaky smirk. Chico's eyes widened for a second as Granddad turned around.

"Mm hmm, tryna hide from me, ain't you?" Granddad asked in mock surprise. Chico slowly shook his head as if he was a kid again getting caught sticking his hand in the cookie jar.

Caesar just snickered as Stacia hit him in the arm. "You're such a jerk." She whispered as he continued to snicker. Just as Granddad did, the two of them watched Chico continue to cook the delicious meal.

Both teens forgot about Huey and Jazmine, sitting on the couch talking.

"You wanna go to the movies?" Jazmine asked her boyfriend with a small hopeful smile.

"No." He bluntly responded, causing Jazmine's smile to fall off.

"Well, why not?" She inquired in a soft, hurt tone. Huey noticed this and inwardly palmed his forehead.

"It's just, nothin' good's playin', that's all." He replied, trying not to upset her too much.

It…kinda, didn't work.

Jazmine sighed as she reached for the remote on the coffee table. "Alright, fine." She said with slight irritation. Huey's looked at his girlfriend with a raised brow.

"Jazmine, what's the problem?" He asked, slightly irritated himself. He didn't like it when people caught attitudes with him. Jazmine just rolled her eyes as she started to flip through channels. She wasn't really paying attention to the TV, she just wanted to get her mind off of something that's been bothering her.

"Nothing, just drop it, okay?" she pleaded trying to turn away from the subject, as if Huey would let her.

"No, something's wrong. Just tell me." He ordered earning a sigh out of his girlfriend.

Jazmine hesitated and then opened her mouth to speak, but she realized that they needed to be alone. She looked passed Huey to see everyone rattling on about Chico's cooking and Granddad's incessant laughter. "Could we go somewhere private?" She asked timidly. Huey eyed her for a second, but it didn't take long for him to oblige.

He stood up off the couch and took Jazmine's hand to get her up also. The two of them walked upstairs, and since Riley would go in their room, Huey decided to take Jazmine to the guest room instead. Jazmine walked in first and Huey walked in after her, locking the door behind them.

"Okay," Huey began, "What's up?"

Once again, Jazmine hesitated for a second before actually responding. "…Huey, is there anyone else on your mind?" She suddenly asked, shocking Huey completely.

Where was _this _coming from?

"What do you mean, 'is there anyone else on my mind'?" Huey asked, totally put off by her question. This time Jazmine wasn't timid. Her anger got the best of her.

"Listen here, Huey Freeman." She started in a firm voice that caught Huey off guard. "Just answer the question. Are you seeing someone _else_?"

Huey's eyes nearly bulged out of his head.

"Jazmine, what the hell? Of course I'm not seeing anyone else. What gave you _that_ idea?" He asked in annoyance and surprise.

Jazmine huffed out a breath of irritation as she massaged her temples and closed her eyes. Huey just stared at her frustrated nature. She was really mad about something, but where did she get all of this from?

It took a few seconds, but Jazmine finally opened her eyes and responded to his question.

"Huey, when we went to the basketball game, I took a little bathroom break." She began as Huey nodded slowly, not really sure where this was going. "As I'm in one of the stalls, I hear someone's voice saying, 'Girl, these boys here are so cute,' and that girl's friend goes 'Yeah, especially those Freeman boys, but they're taken. Too bad,'." Jazmine continued as Huey smirked. He had a feeling Jazmine was jealous. " Then the first girl was like 'the Freeman brothers?' like she didn't know who you and Riley were or something. Then her friend goes 'Oh, y'know, the cute boy with the braids and his brother with the afro. They look just alike-'"

"I beg to differ." Huey interrupted. Jazmine sucked her teeth in annoyance.

"Can you just let me finish the story?" She rhetorically asked. Huey just gave her a rare apologetic nod. "Okay, so anyways, her friend's like 'Oh, that's their names?' and the other one's like, 'Yeah. Riley goes with Stacia on the dance team, and it took me a while to figure out who Huey's girl was, but I found out that it was that mixed girl.' So I'm just not really paying them any mind as they continue to talk. So when I'm done I walk out and expect them to say 'Oh, there she is,' or something like that, but they just continue to talk as if I wasn't there." Jazmine went on in a frustrated tone as Huey began to look bored. This has gone far enough.

"Jaz-"

"LET ME FINISH!" She yelled abruptly, making Huey clamp his mouth shut. "So the second girl goes 'yeah, his girl is really pretty. She's really short and has long dark hair and her eyes are gorgeous.' So I'm like, okay…that's _definitely _not me they're describing, because first of all," Jazmine ticked off her fingers, "I'm not short, secondly, my hair's not dark and…well I guess my eyes are gorgeous…but that's beside the point!" She announced as Huey rolled his eyes. "And you wanna know what got me the most?"

"What?" he asked, not really caring.

"The first girl asked 'So how did you find out?' and the girl's friend said 'She told me.'" Jazmine stated in a serious voice as she glared at Huey in anger. "Now how on _Earth_ did Huey Freeman's girlfriend tell that girl that, if his girlfriend doesn't speak to said girl, huh?" Jazmine asked, raising her voice. "Now _you_ tell me, how is that possible?" She challenged him, crossing her arms.

Huey just looked at her with a deadpanned expression.

"Okay, Jazmine. First of all, why would you listen to some females who live their lives talking about other people?" He began.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "It's not like they were being mean. They called you cute for goodness sake."

"And why," he continued, ignoring her statement, "Would you think that I'm lookin' at another girl?"

Jazmine just remained quiet, but her frustrating demeanor was still the same. Huey rolled his eyes this time.

"C'mon Jazmine. You're smarter than that." He added, using hand gestures. "You know how crazy girls can be, and…hold up." Huey stated, changing his whole attitude from reasoning to shock. Jazmine just lifted up an eyebrow.

"What?" she asked in concern, uncrossing her arms.

Huey looked at Jazmine, not really glaring at her, but he just glared as he thought of the text message from last night. He had forgotten all about it.

_Drop the mulatto and you'll save another one of your friends from getting hurt._

"Damn it!" He silently exclaimed, as he pulled out his phone from his back pocket.

As Huey continued to stare, Jazmine grew a bit uncomfortable. "H-Huey? What's wrong? You're scaring me."

Huey just put a hand up as if saying 'stop talking' and Jazmine got the message as she continued to stare at her boyfriend uncomfortably. Huey looked down at his phone and continued to read the whole thing. His eyebrows lifted higher than usual as he read the last line.

_Note: This is no joke, Huey Freeman. Sweet dreams, cutie._

"Cutie?" Huey silently blurted out as he thought of the text from last night.

"What?" Jazmine asked, but Huey quickly shushed her.

Huey knew something was up. He had a feeling that this person was much closer than he thought. He had a feeling that he knew this person.

Well…kinda, sorta. He didn't know too many people, but he had a feeling that he'd seen this person before. He just couldn't think of who it was.

He finally looked up from his phone towards Jazmine. "Jaz, I gotta tell you somethin', and you're not gonna like it-"

"I knew it! You jerk! I can't believe I almo-"

"NO, Jazmine!" He yelled and groaned in frustration. "Stop thinkin' I'm lookin' for someone else. I'm not, okay?" Jazmine nodded shyly and Huey sighed as he gently rested his hands on her cheeks. "Look, you know I don't like to yell at you, but you gotta listen to me, okay?"

Jazmine nodded again, and Huey just kissed her forehead, making her feel a lot better.

"Alright, look." He told her as he showed her the text message. Jazmine read it aloud, and after she was finished, she continued to stare at the screen in silence. Huey started to get a little worried when he noticed her quietness. "You, okay?" He asked.

He waited for her response, but all he received was a light snort. Jazmine then turned on her heel and headed to walk out of the room, but she never made it.

"Jazmine," Huey called to her, "I said, are you okay?"

Jazmine didn't budge for a second, but when she turned around, Huey, though he'd never admit it, was a little scared. If looks could kill, he'd be one dead mutha-. "Just to make things clear, you don't know who this person is, right?" She inquired in a low tone Huey never heard before. All he could do was nod slowly. "Okay, so this person just so happens to get your number and text you this _pathetic _excuse of a threat," She continued, "and you think showing it to me would get me to cry to you saying 'oh help me, Huey, please help me!' You think that's what it'd do to me, huh?"

Whoa.

Huey didn't exactly know how to respond, so he just kept quiet. Jazmine was acting pretty scary right now.

"Uh, Jazmine…I think you should-"

"Calm down?" She knowingly asked, finishing his statement.

"Well…yeah, actually." Huey replied, wincing at her dagger throwing glares. Jazmine noticed this and softened.

All at once, Jazmine knew. She knew she was beginning to act irrational. She hated it when she was riled up. She turned into a monster, or some…other type of vicious animal that she couldn't think of. To see her intimidate her boyfriend just made her feel horrible. No one intimidated _him_, so she knew she was going overboard.

"Oh God…Huey, I'm so sorry." She apologized, as her eyes began to water in humiliation, "I didn't mean to go off on you like that. Sometimes I let my anger get the best of me and I take it out on others and-"

"It's okay, Jaz." Huey responded in an understanding tone. He pulled her close to him and hugged her sweetly as she let a lone tear run down her cheek. They stayed like that for five seconds before pulling back. Once they did, Huey saw her cheek and wiped away the tear. "Stop crying, okay? Everything's fine. I gotta find out who this person is though. _You_ don't worry about it."

"But, I want to." Jazmine replied in a small voice, but Huey protested.

"Nope, I can't let you do that." He finalized as Jazmine narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why not? She's threatening you, me…all of us! I feel I should be involved." She argued.

Huey rolled his eyes. God, the girl just wouldn't let up.

"Jazmine, I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Oh yeah? Well who cares. I'm going." _She_ finalized a hard tone as she pulled herself out of his embrace and walked towards the door. She turned the doorknob and opened the door, but before she walked out, she looked back at Huey.

"Huey, I'm much stronger than I used to be. You'd know that if you'd given me a chance to defend myself." She half-joked and smirked at him as he looked her with a shocked demeanor

This girl was acting like she didn't just tear up in front of him. Her attitude switched from tough, to weak, and back to tough. Just what the hell was he gonna do with that girl?

"Whatever," Huey finally agreed to it, rolling his eyes. "But if I see one scratch on you, that's it." He demanded as Jazmine in turn, rolled her eyes and turned on her heels with Huey following her.

* * *

6:24 PM

By now, Kayla was fast asleep on Cindy's chest as Cindy was knocked out as well. They had spent all their time talking, eating, playing games and singing while the parents alternately walked in and out of the room to, do whatever. Pretty soon, everyone in the room slept peacefully. It was so peaceful in fact, that they didn't even stir once the door opened.

Waltzing in was none other than Cindy's friends.

"Great, she's sleep. I told you we should've come earlier." Stacia whispered as she silently hit Riley on the arm. Riley just rolled his eyes.

"So what? Wake her ass up." Riley said, not really concerned with lowering his voice as everyone shushed him.

"Riley, shut up." Huey whispered. Jazmine glared at Riley as Caesar shook his head. She then noticed da tiny little frame on top of Cindy.

"Aww!" She silently exclaimed. "Is that Kayla? She's so cute!" She silently cooed as no one, but Stacia, really cared.

"She is isn't she?" Stacia added, still whispering. Of course, no one answered.

Caesar was so tired of waiting that he walked over to Cindy and lightly shook her shoulder. "Cindy." He called her, barely over a whisper. The rest of the crew blinked at him.

"What's into him?" Jazmine asked, whispering to Huey. Huey just looked at her with a raised eyebrow, yet again, as if saying 'you already know'. Jazmine seemed to have understood as she opened her mouth and closed it, ending with a smile.

"Cindy." Caesar called out to her again. Cindy groaned a little and it took her a minute, but she eventually opened her eyes to see five faces staring at her.

"Uh…what's up?" She asked, not really expecting her friends to show up. She thought they'd be here much earlier, but she suddenly gave up waiting for them and dozed off.

"What's up?" Riley started. "We 'bout to get yo' ass out of here."

Cindy rose her eyebrows.

"But, that's why my parents are here. They were gonna take me home. And by the way, I thought ya'll niggas was gon' come earlier. What the hell were ya'll doin'? I'm waitin' here this whole time stuck in this hospital bed like I can't walk and all day, all _day_ I'm waitin' for my niggas to show up!" She argued as her anger began to rise, but Huey stopped her before she went any further.

"Cindy, we'd love to hear you rant on and on about things you think you know, but all you _need_ to know right now is that we havea _good_ reason as to why we didn't show up sooner, so calm down. I'll explain later." Huey responded and rolled his eyes once Cindy sighed.

"Whateva." She replied nonchalantly and looked down at her baby cousin. "Kay. Kay, wake up." She lightly told the girl as she shook her a little.

"No, mommy. I wanna go to Elmo's house." Kayla silently responded, still sleeping. The girl's giggled at Kayla's cute response as Riley and Caesar smiled. Huey _wanted_ to smile, but…right now, he had some things on his mind.

"Kayla," Jazmine started as she gently rocked Kayla awake. "It's me, Jazmine. Don't you want to see me?" Jazmine asked quietly. Kayla stirred, but didn't wake up. That's when everyone decided to give up.

"It's okay." Cindy guaranteed. "She be sleepin' heavy all the time. I just need someone to hold her while I get changed." Cindy stated before Jazmine picked the little girl up and held her. "Now, I'ma go change in the bathroom, so y'all just wait out here." She ordered as she walked to the bathroom, closing up the hospital gown in the back. No one really paid attention to that, but still.

Cindy had been in the bathroom for nearly five minutes now, and Caesar grew impatient.

"Okay, so how long has she been in there?" Caesar asked, not really wanting a response. The crew just looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

"Nigga, chill." Riley replied with a roll of his eyes. "Shit, why you so impatient anyway? She 'bout to get out."

Caesar just sighed heavily once again, as if talking to Riley was getting rather annoying. Riley took notice and snorted.

"Aiight, nigga. Be like that."

And Caesar just ignored him, yet again.

Everyone watched Caesar as he looked at…well, they weren't sure. He looked out of it. They all glanced at each other with worried looks.

"Ceez," Stacia asked, walking in front of the boy. "You aiight?" She was about to put her hand on his shoulder, but he backed away slightly.

Caesar slowly nodded his head, his dreads swinging. "Yeah, I'm good." He then averted his gaze to his best friend. "Huey, can I speak to you outside?" He asked, pointing his thumb towards the door. Huey drew his eyebrows together, confused, but he followed his friend nonetheless.

Outside…

"Ceez, what's up?" Huey inquired with a voice full of concern. This was rare. To worry about Caesar was _very_ rare.

Caesar looked up at his friend and pulled his cell phone out of his dark purple and black Nike windbreaker pocket. "Yo, look." He motioned for Huey to walk over to him and look at his phone.

_Tell your friend to keep her mouth shut, and she won't get hurt…_

_Maybe. Aha!_

_-Unknown-_

After Huey read the text, he slowly rolled eyes and groaned in frustration. This little 'game' was already pissing him off. "Ceez, when'd you get this message?"

Caesar shook his head as he recalled the day he'd gotten it. He didn't wanna say it. It was all too weird.

"You know how me, you, Stacia and Jazzy went to the mall, right?" He rhetorically asked, but Huey nodded anyways. Caesar gulped nervously before he said what he was going to say. "Well…I got it ten minutes before Riley called you."

And Huey's…jaw…dropped.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Huey?" Now it was Caesar's turn to grow worried. His best friend violently shook his head.

"You mean to tell me," Huey started in a voice of disbelief. "That this person threatened Cindy's life, before Cindy got hurt?"

Caesar slowly nodded.

"Well, why didn't you say anything-"

"'Cause," he quickly cut Huey off. "I ain't wanna worry nobody. But this person is crazy as hell." He began to explain. "At first, when I saw it, I laughed and responded 'Aye, fuck you nigga'. I thought it was a joke or somethin'. Then the nigga responded talkin' about some 'Okay, I warned you.' Then the next thing you know, Riley hittin' you up on the cell." He finished, shaking his head slowly.

Huey just stared at his friend as he pondered.

And pondered…

And…well what do you know…_pondered_…

"Aye, man." Huey said, pulling his phone out of his pocket. "I think I got a lead, and this person is _definitely _not a 'nigga'." He said as he showed Caesar the message. "This happened last night, though."

Caesar's eyebrows rose in shock as he saw the psycho's message. "Did she just call you…cutie?"

Huey nodded, his eyes closed.

"And she's tryna break you and Jaz' up?"

Huey nodded once again.

"…Wow. This bitch is lost." Caesar replied, as Huey's eyes shot open. He's never heard his friend call women _that_ before. Man, Cindy must mean much more to him than he thought. "She gon' hurt Cindy all because she…Oh my God." Caesar changed his demeanor as he began to stumble backwards into the wall, his hand resting on his forehead.

"Ceez, what's wrong?" Huey asked, walking towards his friend's panicked state.

"Oh my God." He repeated before looking his friend square in the face. "I think I know…who's behind this."

Now, if that didn't gain all of Huey's interest, than nothing would.

"What?" Huey questioned aloud. When Caesar didn't answer, he fought the urge yell at the boy.

Caesar's hyperventilation essentially died down as he caught himself and pushed off of the wall. "I think it's that girl Briana." He finally let out, as Huey made a face.

_Briana?_

"Briana? But why would she threaten us? We don't even talk to her." Huey asked, rolling his eyes. Caesar slightly glared at him as he did that.

"Yeah, well I guess you ain't pay attention when her evil ass tried to get smart with me," He started, "But Cindy shut her ass down and that girl was on mute." He ended and smirked as he thought of the day before.

"So…you think _that's _why that girl is after me and Jaz?" Huey asked, not necessarily believing it. Caesar grew agitated.

"Yes, nigga!" He blurted out as Huey narrowed his eyebrows. "Can't you see it?"

Huey rolled his eyes, growing agitated himself. "Okay, I hear you on the _Cindy_ part, but what does that have to do with _us_?"

Caesar blinked.

"…Nigga, I don't know. I just figured it was Briana 'cause, I mean…who else has Cindy ever been mean to? Recently?" He added as he saw Huey smirk in amusement.

"I don't know, but you don't know, either. We don't see her 24/7."

"No, but I'm her best friend and she tells me everything." He replied without putting much thought into it. "She would've told me by now if she's been in some type of dispute with somebody."

Huey just shook his head. "Aiight." He said, still not believing this was all because of that Briana girl. Caesar just rolled his eyes as he was about to retort, but just then, the rest of the crew, plus a sleeping Kayla and Cindy's groggily parents, exited the hospital room.

"Let's go my niggas!" Cindy happily exclaimed as her parents looked at her.

"Now, Cindy…"

"Sorry mom." She apologized. She looked back at her friends and the smile plastered on her visage once again. "Let's go!" Everyone happily followed her as Cindy's parents headed to their car.

As everyone walked outside and exchanged goodbyes with Cindy's parents, Huey didn't know where it came from, but something came to his mind.

Something that Jazmine had said hours earlier.

"…_the other girl goes_ _'yeah, his girl is really pretty. She's really short and has long dark hair and her eyes are gorgeous…'"_

His eyes nearly fell out of his sockets.

"…'_So how did you find out?' and the girl's friend said 'She told me.'…Now how on Earth did Huey Freeman's girlfriend tell that girl that, if his girlfriend doesn't speak to said girl, huh?"_

_Well I'll be damned._ Huey thought. Caesar was right.

He _had_ to be. There was just no other possible explanation.

That would explain the 'accident' at the Pep Rally.

That would explain the smile she flashed to him on Caesar's doorstep.

That would explain her pointing out his veggie eating ways, as if they knew each other.

But that wouldn't explain how the hell this girl got his number.

One way or another, Huey Freeman was going to find out. And something told him it wouldn't be pretty.

* * *

It is Briana...isn't it?

They already findin' out about the girl huh? Well...

I think it's too soon! We'll see how things'll turn out next chapter, but until then...

REVIEW! Please and thank you!


	12. Let's Get Something Straight Pt I

Well thank youu, you ass of an internet! *sigh* honestly, what's going on? I tried to upload this thing two days ago!

Anyways,

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE BOONDOCKS! THAT SEXY MUTHAEFFER AARON MCGRUDER DOES THOUGH.

Uh, umm...did I just say that? *Haha!* No...

...

...Riiightt, anyways...

SHOUTOUTS!

To the most amazing people on the face of this planet! (well actually, idk that many people but hey, lol)

To the main reviewers- Miss Ace Thank You! (Aka Ace Boogie lmao can I call you that? *tom voice* No? okay.), jayjai107 (I'm guessing your nickname is...jay? lol), & MissG2020 (hmm, how about I call youuu...I got nothin' lol)! Ya'll are wonerfulll!

Shellie B, you're about to be added to the list if you continue to comment on every chapter too! (that...sounded like a threat, but it really wasn't lol. & thanks for pointing out the author notes lol but i'm no comedian! *blinks*) You too MzMinni3!

& last but not least, the latest reviewer D-Rae. lmao seriously though? "why can't Jaz have them big perky melons?" LMAO! Sorry dude, I just don't think every girl should have double Ds in every story. Just not realistic. But thanks for your review. I greatly appreciate it!

Okay my niggass!

(Mom walks in) What you say?

Uh...

STORY TIME!

* * *

CHAPTER 12: LET'S GET SOMETHING STRAIGHT PT. I

Music blared through the speakers from the living room just as soon as the six teens, plus the little girl, who was wide awake by the way, entered the Freeman Residence. There were also a few more people than expected who showed up.

Like…about half of the Sophomore class?

What the hell were _they_ doing there? This was supposed to be a little celebration between Cindy's friends, not between Cindy's classmates.

Casually walking down the hallway with confusion written all over their faces, except for Kayla's who was clearly excited to see so many people, the crew bumped into an Asian dude with short black hair, a burgundy hoodie, black jeans and white Nike's. The guy had some earphones wrapped around his neck and shot the crew a bright, toothy grin.

"What's up, party people?" He politely greeted in a smooth voice. He kinda sounded like he was trying to be black, but then again he didn't. It was kind of hard to explain, but he didn't sound corny or anything. Kayla gave the guy a huge grin.

"Hi! I'm Kayla!" She cutely greeted him back. The crew just looked at him with the same confused look they had on their faces when they walked in.

"Well hello, Kayla. I'm Hiro." He said as he knelt down to the little girl's height. "And I would be your DJ for this party."

"I think you'd have the decency to actually tell _us_ what's going on rather than speaking to a little girl." Jazmine responded as everyone, but Huey, eyed her. Damn, what was with her?

Hiro cleared his throat uncomfortably as the awkward silence between them commenced. "Right. Well, I'm Hiro," He started off. "As I just stated before, I'm here to provide you with all of your favorite jams. So ahh, if you have any songs in particular that you'd like to hear, just let a brotha know." He informed them with all the decency in the world.

The crew nodded as Kayla began to do some little dance in front of them once she heard Single Ladies.

It was a wonder they could hear the boy as loud as the music was playing, but they did.

"Hiro, would you mind telling me what's goin' on? I mean, we were just gonna have a little thing with our friends, not the whole Goddamn school." Huey said, leaning over to speak to the dude without Kayla hearing them. Hiro chuckled as Huey pulled away.

"Relax my dude. Your grandfather said it was cool. I was wondering why the princess gangsta ain't show up for the Homecoming dance earlier today, 'cause, ya'll know she's the life of the party right?" He asked as the crew nodded.

Actually, Huey didn't know, for he's never been to the Homecoming dance before. Or any other party Cindy's ever gone to for that matter. The only reason he planned on going to this one was because of two reasons: It was the last high school dance he'd ever go to with his entire crew, and Jazmine was going. But, because of Cindy's expense, that plan was pretty much thrown out the window.

"So, I took a little break as I let a few songs play," Hiro went on. "And I asked Mr. Lassiter (the principal), where Cindy McPhearson was and he said he didn't know. So I asked him if he had your number somewhere," he pointed to Cindy as she nodded. "And he said, it was in the office and he gave me the key, which was a huge surprise 'cause y'know, who the hell gives students keys to an office? But anyways," he continued as he noticed Huey and Riley's faces with matching bored looks on them. "I looked on your information card and called your house, but no one answered. So I called your mom's cell and she answered. So we got to talkin' and what not and we finalized that we should have this little party. She told me where it was and she told me to let you guys know. She said it was a surprise and she'd talk it over with you guys' granddad," he pointed to both Huey and Riley. "And basically, that was that. We here, ya'll here, and there's a party goin' on. So enjoy." He finally ended and turned to walk to the living room.

The crew looked at each other, as Kayla continued to dance, and shrugged. Okay, so this was a huge surprise and Cindy's parents along with Granddad knew. So all of these people _didn't_ show up uninvited. Cool.

Huey didn't necessarily like the idea of having so many people in his house, but it was whatever. This was for Cindy anyways.

"Well, I'm gonna go check to see if anyone's in my room." Huey announced as the crew nodded. Jazmine gave him a small grin.

"Okay, I'm coming!" She excitedly beamed as everyone, but Huey, looked at her again. She was just so serious, now she was acting like a damn kid high off sugar. Huey rolled his eyes and took her hand as she followed him, blushing.

And up the stairs they went.

Cindy shrugged once again. "Aiight, well since this is a party…" She trailed on before running into the living room to become the center of attention, leaving Riley, Stacia, Caesar and Kayla standing there. Kayla stopped dancing and looked up to see three teens looking around at the scene in the house. She then looked ahead as she heard Cindy getting into the music and happily skipped into the living room.

Caesar was about to call to the girl, but as he looked around, he realized that he didn't really need to. She was just fine. This place was full of amateurs and people who just liked to dance. Potential killers, pedophiles or anything like that didn't seem to be in sight. So he just shrugged and gracefully walked into the living room himself.

Now, standing in the hallway, stood Riley and Stacia.

As Riley looked around, he spotted a few people he most definitely, no, he _most assuredly_, would never associate himself with. Not _those _uppity niggas. And if Tyree Hall was up in this bitch, Riley would absolutely, _positively_, go off.

Never would he invite a stranger into his premises. Ha! That'd be the day.

"What up, Riley?" And I guess the day had arrived? Riley turned around. There, standing in front of a now very pissed off Riley Freeman, stood a medium brown skinned young man, just an inch shorter than Riley, and his two colleagues standing behind him. The one on the right side was light skinned, lighter than Huey and Riley, with dreads as long as Lil' Wayne, whereas the other dude on the left was dark skinned with a fresh cut. All three of them had that sly smirk on their faces that Riley would be more than glad to wipe off.

"Nigga, what you want?" Riley gravely questioned back. The light skinned dude rolled his eyes as he sipped his drink that Riley just now noticed was in his hand. The other two just continued to smirk. "And you know not to call me by my government. It's either Esco', Escobar or Young Reezy. Choose one or move on."

The dark skinned guy smirked as if he took Riley as a joke, and he did.

"Look _Young Reezy_, we ain't come here lookin' for no fights. We just came to celebrate this Homecoming thing with the home girl Cindy over there." He said as he pointed down the hallway to a crowd of people rooting for Cindy and her little cousin. The medium brown skinned guy sighed.

"C'mon now, Corey. You know we don't need to explain ourselves to this lil' boy-"

"Nigga, get out my house." Riley growled as Stacia looked at him with worry. She knew he didn't like this dude, but he looked as if he was ready to kill.

_This can't be good._

"Uh, baby, I think you need to calm down." Stacia told him barely above a whisper. As she looked at the three arrogant looking niggas in front of her, her scowl was prominent. "And you three need to go. This ain't no place to stir up drama, so if you tryna start some, I suggest you leave now. If you just here to enjoy the party, then by all means stay, but chill with that childish shit. Nobody has time for your bullshit, Tyree." She let them know as the three of them rolled their eyes. "And don't think Riley can't whoop ya'll little asses; on AND off the court." She concluded as Tyree squinted his eyes in disbelief. His boys just sucked their teeth.

"Whatever." Tyree said as he headed to the living room, followed by his trusty lackeys.

Riley looked back at his girlfriend and smirked. "Damn baby," he commented as Stacia snorted. "You handled that shit pretty well." Stacia smiled back and kissed Riley for a few.

"Yeah, well I don't like them either, and you looked like you were about to about to bite their damn heads off." Stacia explained as Riley laughed halfheartedly. The situation was a little funny.

Just then, Jazmine and Huey walked down the stairs laughing and saw that Riley and Stacia were still standing in the hallway laughing as well.

"Damn, ya'll still here?" Huey asked with a raised eyebrow. Jazmine was just smiling as she thought back on what just happened. Riley and Stacia looked back at them nodding.

"Yeah, we just had a little encounter with someone we really wanted to see." Stacia replied sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

"Who?" Jazmine asked, trying to stifle laughter. Huey looked at her and tried to contain his smile, but it just didn't seem to work.

Riley looked at them with squinted eyes of confusion. Stacia didn't even look at them. She just shook her head and looked over her shoulder.

"Them niggas over there." She said, directing her attention to Tyree, who was so engrossed in his conversation with the dark skinned dude, Corey. The light skinned dude was nowhere to be seen.

"Who, Tyree?" Jazmine asked. Huey just rolled his eyes.

"I know that goofy nigga is not in my house." He hoped, for Tyree's sake. He really didn't like that nigga. Huey was no hater, no matter how many times Granddad, Riley, Rummy or Ed had said so in the past, but Tyree just wasn't a likeable person. Huey always gave credit where credit was due, so he admitted that Tyree was good on the basketball team, but he wasn't the best and the dude boasted as if he was. It was sickening and straight up irritating. How anyone could even _begin_ to deal with a person like that was beyond him.

"Yep. He sho' is. Drinkin' up the damn punch and what not. I shoulda whopped that nigga's ass when he was standin' here." Riley stated as he scowled at the dude. Stacia put her hand in Riley's shoulder.

"Baby, chill. He's just a distraction. Don't let him get to your head. Today was a good one. Ya'll won the game, Cindy's okay and this party is live as hell. Let's just enjoy it, okay?" She reasoned with him and kissed his cheek as he sighed.

"Okay, fine. Let's go." He told her, but Huey stopped him.

"Actually, Riley, I gotta talk to you." Huey said as Riley shot him a glare. "Don't look at me like that. And it won't take long." Huey warned him. Stacia just looked at Huey and tilted her pretty head in confusion.

"Um, okay…well I'll be over there with Cindy and them. Jaz', you comin'?" She asked hopefully. Jazmine apologetically shook her head.

"Sorry Stacia, but I'll be in there in a minute." She promised as Stacia sighed, nodded and walked off. The three of them watched as Tyree looked at her and waved. Riley glared.

_So the nigga's tryna be funny, huh?_

Stacia flipped him off and walked into the living room, disappearing with the crowd. Riley could've sworn he heard Tyree respond to Stacia's gesture with a 'when and where' comment, but Huey quickly turned his attention away from that.

"Riley, don't worry about him." Huey said in annoyance. "Just listen to me." Riley nodded as Jazmine continued Huey's statement.

"Okay, now do you know what the person looked like who was choking Cindy?" She asked in a hard, business-like tone. Riley's eyes, along with his tone, hardened at the mention of that incident.

"What the fuck is this? We at a damn party and ya'll tryna worry me with this bullsh-"

"Just answer the damn question, Riley!" Huey exclaimed as his anger started to get the best of him. "This is important."

Riley tilted his head, just as Stacia did, and raised that Huey brow. "Ya'll know somethin' about this person, don't y'all?" he asked knowingly. Jazmine, in response, lifted her eyebrows to her hairline as Huey just looked at Riley. She didn't expect him to catch on, but Huey knew his brother was smart. He caught on quick.

Huey sighed.

"Yeah, and honestly, we need your help, along with Caesar's." He responded, matter of factly. "You know what? We might even need Cindy in this. She may've been a victim but she's pretty tough." He realized as Jazmine glared at him and Riley slowly nodded his head, half understanding and half…not…understanding.

"Right, and you said you didn't want me involved? Cindy's a girl too! I'm tough too! I may be emotional, but I can handle my own." Jazmine complained as she looked at Huey, hurt in her voice and her eyes. Riley just looked at the ordeal in front of him uncaringly. Huey sighed as he saw Jazmine's eyes. He didn't like it when she did that.

"C'mon now, baby. You know I don't want you to get hurt." He responded as Jazmine nodded turning away from him, but she sharply turned her head in his direction as Riley did the same. Their eyes grew ten times their normal size.

"You…just called me baby?" Jazmine asked, as if she didn't hear him. Riley's lips began to spread into a grin as he eyed his big brother's facial expression.

Huey looked back at them with wide eyes. Did he really just say that? Aloud? And in front of big-mouth Riley?

His cheeks filled with red, not pink, red, as he focused his gaze on Jazmine. "Y-yeah, I guess I did." He stammered as Riley snickered.

"Damn, nigga you _is_ gettin' soft on me." Huey glared.

"Hush." He warned. "Now, just answer the question." Huey ordered as his cheeks were still aflame.

Riley rolled his eyes. "Aiight, nigga." He began. "Where do I start?"

"The beginning would suffice." Huey sarcastically remarked. Riley just scoffed.

"Shut up, smart guy." After a quick thought, Riley snapped his fingers. "Oh, okay. Well this nigga had on all black first off all. Lookin' like a ninja or some shit. And he was really skinny and tall. And trust me, this nigga was a nigga, 'cause I ain't never seen a bitch with that many damn muscles in my life, or a nigga, for that matter." He noted in realization. "Matter of fact, the nigga looked like a mini version of The Hulk, and ya'll know that nigga strong as hell. Shit, nigga could pick the world up and drop it on yo' fuckin' head." Riley said, followed by a little snicker at his Lil' Wayne reference. "But yeah, that's all I know."

Huey and Jazmine looked at each other and then back at Riley with the exact same looks on their faces.

Shock.

"What?" Jazmine exclaimed as Riley sucked his teeth.

"Damn Jaz', you want me to reiterate or somethin'?"

"NO!" She yelled, causing him to jump at her response. "Sorry for yelling, but no. It's just…"

"We thought a girl did this." Huey answered her statement for her.

"A girl?" Riley let out before laughing out loud. "Well shit, if that was a girl than…damn." He concluded as he continued to laugh. Huey looked bored.

"Are you done?" He asked, as Riley nodded, still laughing. Clearly he wasn't, but whatever.

"Look." Huey said as he pulled out his cell phone and turned on his screen. Riley raised an eyebrow at him, coming down from his laughter, before looking down at the phone.

He read the message and blurted out.

"WHAT?" Well that didn't make sense.

"I know. It doesn't add up, right?" Jazmine knowingly responded to his outburst. Riley looked at her and nodded.

"Hell naw. This shit crazy. She actually messaged you?"

"Caesar too." Huey said as both Jazmine and Riley looked at him in shock.

"I didn't know that." Jazmine told him. Huey snorted.

"I know. He just showed me at the hospital. That's why he was actin' strange like that." He answered. "And you wouldn't believe the conclusion he came up with, which sounded pretty understandable, until now." He added.

"What?" Jazmine asked with all the curiosity in the world.

"Yeah, nigga, what?" Riley added.

Huey snorted before responding. "He said it was Briana."

"_BRIANA_?" The other two exclaimed as they looked at each other and then back to Huey. Huey sighed.

"Yes, Briana." He reiterated, rolling his eyes. He hated repeating himself.

"Well how did it all make sense before?" Jazmine asked. "We don't even associate with her."

"Yeah." Riley added as if he were some kind of echo.

Huey sighed, for he knew Jazmine would be pissed beyond belief. Oh well, she had to know the truth at some point in time.

"Okay, well at the Pep Rally, she sat next to me, and you knew that 'cause you came over later." He began as Jazmine just chocked up her eyebrow, waiting for him to continue. Riley just listened. "Okay, so after the Pledge, I'm about to sit down, and she brushes her hand against the back of my pants claiming that somethin' there, which I highly doubted, but I was like, whatever." He said as Riley drew his eyebrows together, still listening. Jazmine huffed, but she controlled her anger. She had to if she wanted to know what was going on. "And later, when she came to Caesar's house with the pizza-"

"Wait, she's a pizza deliverer?" Jazmine asked with a smirk as Riley snickered yet again.

Huey rolled his eyes. "Yes. Now could you not interrupt me?" Jazmine rolled her eyes also and nodded. "Alright, so when Caesar and Cindy picked up the pizza, she looks at me and smiles at me like she expected me to smile back. So I just look at her like, 'okay', and you," He looked at Riley as Riley in turn raised the brow, "You told me to get the pizza and complained about me bein' lazy. And after that I just picked up the pizza and was about to turn and close the door, but she says 'Veggie Pizza? That's so you, Huey.' Like she knew me." Huey said as he grimaced.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "I knew something was up with that girl. I never liked her." She explained. "I always felt kind of bad for judging her without knowing her, but I kind of didn't care, and I'm glad because…oh ho ho," Jazmine went on ending in laughter that Huey presumed was pent up anger.

"Jaz', calm down." Huey said, trying to…well, calm her down. "I'm even starting to doubt if it's her now. Riley just said it was a man that strangled Cindy."

"Okay, but she could be working with someone. I mean, God, Huey I know you're cute and lots of girls would like to get with you, but she's bold. And I do _not_ like the vibes I get from that girl. I think it _is _her." Jazmine stated and then her eyes went wide as she thought of something. "Besides, remember what I told you about what happened at the game?" Jazmine went on, as Huey's eyes went wide too. He palmed his face with his hand as Riley looked at the both of them.

Okay, now he was confused.

"What she talkin' about, yo?" Riley asked his older sibling. Jazmine looked at Riley and shook her head. She told him everything that happened while she was in the bathroom and Riley looked at her with an unreadable expression.

"…You damn right she bold." He started. "Bitch actually told people…her and my brother go out." He stated, more to Jazmine than to Huey.

"Yep, and I can't wait to see her." Jazmine said as her pissed off nature was evident now. "Where is she?" Huey and Riley saw the look on Jazmine's face, and they knew that if ever Briana was to show up at that party, she'd be in for an ass whooping of a lifetime.

"Hopefully she ain't here. We ain't here to draw blood. We here to party." Riley noted while he looked around. The party was still jumping.

Damn. All three of them forgot about their surroundings. They were supposed to have fun, and they were so caught up in the drama, they were oblivious to the fact that the party was going on with or without them.

And not only that.

They didn't even notice that little old Briana Taylor nosily sat behind them on the steps, listening to their every word.

_Damn, I have to be more careful. They're on to me._ She thought as she sneakily walked past the crew and bolted out the door without another word. Okay, so she had to be more tactful. She had to be more discreet. Because of these people were onto her, her entire plan wouldn't work out. And she wasn't only afraid of the fact that Cindy would definitely whoop her ass, since she knew Huey, Riley and Jazmine would tell her, but she was also afraid of Jazmine, actually. She'd never seen such fire in the meek young woman's eyes. Jazmine looked as if she was ready to kill. And if she'd spotted Briana right on those steps, Briana wouldn't have made it out of that house alive.

_Alright, time for plan B._ Briana thought with an evil grin as she hurriedly walked down the street, just in case she was seen by anyone else.

Whatever plan B was, Briana was sure to go with it and was pretty sure the crew wouldn't be onto her this time.

* * *

"We got the jazz, we got the jazz!" Caesar chanted along with A Tribe Called Quest as the song played throughout the entire house. Riley and Stacia were in the kitchen getting some food, along with Lamaar and Marcus.

"Yo, Cindy just told me she was admitted." Marcus stupidly remarked as the three of his friends gave him a deadpanned look. "I ain't know that."

"Duh, Marcus. That's why we here." Lamaar mentioned as he shook his head. "Honestly man, where's your head?" He said as he playfully tapped his best friend's noggin.

"Ah, nigga. Don't do that." Marcus warned with a glare, but it quickly softened when a high yellow young lady with medium length hair walked up to him holding a drink. He smiled at her as she kissed his cheek.

"Baby, what you do to make Lamaar fuss you out again?" she asked with a raised brow as Riley, Stacia and Lamaar tried to hold in their laughter. Marcus sucked his teeth at his friends.

"Man, nothin' they just trippin'."

"Nigga, please." Lamaar started, "This dude ain't know Cindy was in the hospital until _she_ told him." he cleared up to his friend's girl. She knowingly smirked.

"Is that so?" she jokingly scolded her boyfriend as he sighed heavily.

That did it.

All three friends had to place their plates on the counter before cracking up, for they feared they were going to drop it.

"THIS NIGGA STUPID!" Riley yelled out through his laughter as he hunched over.

"Dumb. ASS!" Lamaar shouted as he threw his head back. Stacia was so weak she couldn't even say anything.

Marcus' girl chuckled a little until he looked at her. The smile never left though.

Marcus frowned.

"Baby, I'm not stupid. Tell them I'm not stupid!" He whined childishly as his friends continued on with their laughter.

"Aww, my poor baby." She cooed as she placed her hands on his face before kissing him on the lips, his pout going away.

He smiled, until…

"You don't think I'm stupid…do you?" His girlfriend remained mute.

"Uh…"

Elsewhere…

Kayla, Cindy, Jazmine and Huey were upstairs in Huey in Riley's room. Kayla was knocked out on Huey's bed. All that partying really wore her out. The rest of the teens were just up there for some serious business.

"Cindy," Huey began, "We think we know who hurt you."

Cindy drew her eyebrows together. "Who?"

"Well, Riley told me that the person he saw was all black and he was…well, basically like a miniature version of The Hulk." He explained as Cindy seemed to understand.

"No wonder that nigga had that tight a grip on me." She responded, to herself, really.

"Yeah, but that's the weird thing because, every other source doesn't seem to add up to large, bulky person." Jazmine continued for Huey. "The sources seem to lead up to that girl Bri-"

"WHAT I NEED, WHAT I NEED, IS THAT GIRL THERE! WHAT I NEED, WHAT I NEED IS THAT GIRL THERE!" Some white boy sang the N.E.R.D. song as he unknowingly bursted into a room he wasn't supposed to be in.

The three friends stared back at him with disbelief as he awkward looked back at them apologetically.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Oh, uh…sorry. I thought this was the bathroom." He apologized. All three friends looked down at Kayla to see her sound asleep.

Good.

Huey sighed. "The bathroom's down the hall in front of the stairs." He directed boringly as the boy nodded and quickly closed the door. On the other side they all could still hear him singing the song.

"_PARTY PEOPLE! PARTY PEOPLE! I CAME TO GET DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN DOWN…GET THE FUCK UP!" _

"Okayy…" Jazmine drew out as she turned her attention from the door. "Anyways, Caesar came to the conclusion that Briana is behind this."

Cindy wrinkled her nose in disgust. "_That_ bitch?" Huey and Jazmine nodded in unison. "What the fuck does she have to do with anything? We don't talk to her!" Cindy nearly yelled, but silently cursed herself as she looked at her cousin.

Who was still asleep.

She blew out a breath of relief and shook her head. "How is that even possible?" she asked in a soft voice of misunderstanding.

"We got proof." Huey indicated. "But first, we gon' need to bring everybody up here."

"Including Stacia?" Jazmine asked.

"Including Stacia."

Meanwhile…

"You got the stuff?" A fair-skinned, huge, Hulk-sculpted black guy whispered as he discreetly stood beside the Freeman household. In front of him was a short Blasian with her long dark hair tied into a bun at the base of her neck and all black attire to match the huge monster in front of her. Her eyes were covered with a black mask.

The sneaky little devil of a young woman pulled a skinny silver object out of the side of her pants pocket and carefully handed it to the huge fellow.

"Right here. Now don't drop it, or else this plan will not…work." She slowly explained to him. "Okay?"

The man rolled his eyes. "I know, I know."

"Good." She stated with one curt nod. "Now you cover the back while I walk in there and see what's going on." She went on as the huge guy looked at her with worried eyes.

"What if you get caught?" He worriedly asked. She just snorted.

"Pssh…they didn't catch me before." The son of Hulk rolled his eyes.

"Okay, Briana, you got lucky." He reminded her, but she quickly shushed him.

"Shut the hell up! They're already onto us! I don't need you sayin' my name!" She silently shouted.

"Oh, my bad." He apologized.

"Yeah, _your_ bad." Briana emphasized with a roll of her eyes. "Whatever, just don't screw this up." She warned him as he simply nodded and headed around the back discreetly. As he left, she let go of some air that she didn't know she held in.

Seriously, she didn't need to worry about _him_ messing this up.

She had to worry about _herself_, because God knew this girl was about to do the utmost risky thing she'd ever done in her entire life.

Even if it meant risking the person's life she was trying to get with.

* * *

Ohhhhhhh, that Briana is a sneaky one isn't she? *sigh*

Oh Lawdy Lawd!

Ya'll have got to review on this one! Or else...

*Random reader* "Or else what?"

...just review damn it!


	13. Let's Get Something Straight Pt II

Theesse are the breaakss. Break it up, break it up, break dowwn! (I was bumpin' that lol)

What up good people! I just want to give special recognition to someone very...special?...

My dumbass computer! I hate youu!

Okay, no really. I _do_ hate you.

Now for some POSITIVE recognition...

Thanks to you faithful readers! Definite shout outs to Miss Ace Thank You, MissG2020, jayjai107, Shellie B, MzMinni3, YoungKong313, misseylady & the latest oneee .. (don't cut me! please!), who threatened to cut me if i didn't update soon enough. Coincedentally, she said so today, so we're both happy (fake smile). & Also thanks .. for favoriting my story! Ya'll are the best!

Now for the excuses...

I had schoolwork, I had a play rehearsal at church to attend, we stayed there for 4 hours (when it was really supposed to be 1 O.o), I had to cook for Easter, Easter came, Easter went and...okay, I was tired, alright! Geez!

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE BOONDOCKS!

Warning...this chapter is not all that great...not to me anyways. I'm waitin' on the action! This chapter just anticipates the action. But yeah, here we go...

* * *

CHAPTER 13: LET'S GET SOMETHING STRAIGHT PT. II

"Lamaar! Why you lyin'? I never did that!" Marcus immaturely yelled as the rest of his friends continued to laugh at the made up story Lamaar told them about Marcus finding a gold coin on the ground and shouting that he was rich. They all knew it wasn't true, but if that ever did happen, they wouldn't doubt it.

Now, while they're laughing and joking, lemme tell ya'll a little something about Lamaar Stevens and Marcus O'Neal.

Lamaar Stevens grew up in Watts, California with his parents Stacy and James, who tragically died in a horrible freak accident. His parents were jogging on the beach with their walkmans' on high volumes and a plane flew down towards them. Neither of them even knew what happened because before anyone knew it…

They were gone.

Lamaar was 11 at the time, and as of now, he's fifteen, so the accident is still pretty recent in his mind, and it's a hard thing to cope with, but somehow he manages to plaster a smile on his face. He doesn't let the accident alter his entire life, like Huey, or he doesn't find joy in making people miserable or by simply making fun of them, like Riley used to do. He's still a chill, comical dude who just likes live his life. Although the accident broke his heart, he learned a valuable lesson: Time waits for no one. Cherish the day and take nothing for granted.

Currently, he lives with his big brother Omar and his four year old niece Aarin (pronounced Erin).

As far as school goes, he's pretty smart. He just can't get past that damn Geometry class, but that's the only big problem. It also doesn't help that his teacher looked like an ex-druggie. Shoot, probably was. He was always rubbing his nose and speaking about some nonsense. Honestly, what are the requirements of becoming a teacher?

All and all, he was bright and logical, kinda like Huey and Caesar, but he wasn't exactly at their level of intelligence.

Ah, Marcus O'Neal.

One thing no one could deny, or two things, is that he was an impeccable dancer and he was one of the best basketball players on the Wuncler High team, but dude wasn't too bright. Now everyone has their moments, but Marcus is just another case.

Now don't get me wrong, he's smart as a whip as far as schoolwork goes. He gets Honor Roll almost every quarter of the school years. He even tutors a few students from time to time, but common sense wise…

Nonexistent.

At his age, 16, you'd think he'd have some sense of direction. If someone told him that the store was literally right down the straight, he'd miss it. He was that stupid. It was a wonder some people could tolerate him. Huey doesn't really bother with him too much. He ain't about to chill with no dumbass.

Obviously.

But others just couldn't help it. His stupidity, sometimes, was the highlight of their day. He was so funny and he didn't even know it. His own girlfriend couldn't even deny the fact that he wasn't too bright up there, but she loved his sweetness.

Camille Jones and Marcus had been together for a year and a half and they're going pretty strong. They sort of resembled Martin and Gina. With the exception of Marcus' stupidity, they kind of acted like them too. Marcus was dark skinned and silly while Camille was light skinned with sandy brown hair that stopped at her shoulders. She was so light that she was Jazmine's skin color, and Jazmine was mixed.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Marcus' family history, ha!

Well, Marcus was born and brought up in Camden (I love that name for my future child btw, DON'T STEAL IT! *growls*), New Jersey and the only reason he moved in the first place was because of his militant parents. Since he was seven years old, his family, of two big sisters and two parents, moved around all over, from New Jersey, to Kansas, to Washington, To Virginia, back to New Jersey and finally, after his father being categorized under disability due to bad knees and shoulders, Woodcrest, Maryland.

Marcus first met Lamaar at the grocery store. It wasn't too pretty. It kinda went something like this.

_Lamaar and Omar O'Neal were in a hurry. Omar's baby mother just called and harshly shouted that her water broke and she had no one to take her to the hospital. The brothers were already in the store getting some groceries, but the trip had to stop short. Panicking, the brothers ran as fast as they could to the register, dropping boxes of cereal and macaroni and bags of flour and sugar. _

_Haphazardly, Lamaar ran into Marcus, hitting him with some Cheerios, and before he could apologize, Marcus pushed him heavily into the shelves of Fruit Roll Ups and Gushers products. At any other given time, Lamaar would've charged right into Marcus and whooped his ass, but he was in a rush and he couldn't think about that. His niece was about to be born and no one was about to ruin that._

"_Watch where you goin' nigga!" Marcus vehemently barked, while Lamaar angrily balled his hands into fists and dropped the three boxes of cereal, that hadn't already fallen due to his running and running _into_._

_He sighed. "Man, I don't have time for this. My niece is due today and I am not about to let a simple nigga ruin my day. So excuse me." Marcus didn't budge, he just continued to glare at him. Lamaar rolled his eyes and started to walk towards Marcus to push him out the way, but Marcus shook his head._

"_Nigga, you gay? Move!" Lamaar was upset now. He honestly couldn't understand why Marcus stood in his way. Did he want to die today?_

"_No! I'm not gay, and I'm not movin'!"_

"_What's your problem?"_

"_Nothin'! I just don't want you to pass me!"_

"_Why not?"_

"_You ain't about to be the bigger man and walk off!"_

_Lamaar blinked at the weird dude. "Nigga, what!"_

"_You heard me! I said-"_

"_I know what you said, it just didn't make sense!"_

"_It makes perfect sense!"_

"_Y'know what, I don't have time for this bullshit!"_

"_You ain't gotta curse nigga!"_

"_You don't need to use Ebonics, nigga!"_

"_I am not chronic! Take it back!"_

"_Huh?"_

"_You deaf?"_

"_No, but you're stupid!"_

"_Am not! You are!"_

"_Okay, CHILD! Are you finished?"_

_They continued to argue like that back and forth. Marcus felt salty about Lamaar pushing bumping into him, and even after Lamaar continuously explained why he was in such a rush, he just didn't want to let him pass. I mean, God. All the boy needed him to say was 'I'm sorry,' not an excuse._

_For a minute, Marcus gave up his childishness and started to walk in the other direction,_

_And BAM!_

_He tripped all over the mess in front of him and landed on his face. For a second, the silence fell between the two, and the next thing anyone knew, laughter filled the air. Lamaar couldn't help it. It's been the first time he laughed since his parent's fatal accident and although at the moment he didn't expect someone like Marcus to make him laugh, he did. Just how did this dumbass trip over cereal boxes? He didn't even attempt to watch where he was going, he just walked. He had to know where he'd just dropped his stuff. What the hell?_

_Still laughing, Lamaar blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "And you call me stupid. You over there trippin' over cereal."_

"_Shut up, yellow nigga." Marcus yelled, groaning as he arose. Lamaar rose an eyebrow._

"_I'm not yellow. I'm just lighter than you."_

"_Whateva, nigga." Marcus retorted, his voice softer this time as he was calming down. "You can go."_

"_Gladly." Lamaar agreed as he didn't even bother to pick up the things he dropped and scurried off._

So their first encounter wasn't too great, but after being in the same seventh grade class with each other, a year after Lamaar's niece was born, the two put their differences aside and talked about the one thing they could relate to.

Basketball.

And that's how it all started. With a basketball (Kinda reminds you of Wizard Kelly from _The Proud Family _lol).

The two met Riley and Caesar on the basketball team in the ninth grade, and since then, the entire crew was good friends with them.

Now, back to the conversation.

"I never did that!" Marcus repeated as his friends fell out in laughter. They were still in the kitchen, with the exception of Camille, who had already walked off into a different area of the house, but this time, the four of them sat at the table.

"Yeah, well it do sound like somethin' you would do though." Lamaar responded with a playful smile. Marcus blew out a breath of air.

"Whateva, yellow nigga." He retorted as the laughter went on.

Yellow nigga. Ever since his first encounter with his best friend, he's used that term to describe him, no matter how many times Lamaar denies that fact. They often joked about it, but Marcus was serious when he was irritated. Lamaar didn't take it too seriously though. Marcus' fuse was short, and it blew over quickly, so he brushed it off most of the time.

Especially now.

"Mad?" he jokingly challenged his friend. Marcus didn't respond.

"Aye, Marcus." Riley called out, all eyes on him. "Quit actin' like a lil' hoe." He added, earning snickers from himself and his friends.

"Shut up!" Marcus yelled. "I'm about to get me some punch." His bi-polar ass added as his friends knowingly shook their heads with smiles and smirks on their faces.

Leaving his friends, Marcus headed over to the punch bowl to get something to drink. Ahead of him in the living room, people were still dancing, chatting, laughing, and whatever else they were doing, but something wasn't right.

Marcus could sense it.

Now, even though Marcus wasn't the brightest person, he knew when something felt out of the ordinary.

And that's when he realized that he was the only person by the punch bowl. His friends were spread throughout the house; in the kitchen, the living room, upstairs, in the dining room and in the hallway. But he wasn't in anyone's reach. He was smack dab in the middle of the living room and the kitchen; in front of the back door.

Growing slightly nervous, he quickly poured some punch in his cup and walked quickly until he tripped…

Over nothing.

*Sigh* This guy really needed to work on his coordination skills.

"Damn." He cursed as his drink was splattered all over the floor. As he rose, he hit his head on something.

Like, someone's fist.

What the hell?

Grabbing his head, he turned around to face a strange looking man. He was sort of skinny looking, but his muscles on his arms were enormous. And he was tall as hell!

Marcus shrunk back and tripped backwards as the huge guy seemed to move closer. "Ay-Aye man. D-don't kill me." He silently pleaded, not being able to find his voice.

"Shut up." The man firmly ordered as Marcus clamped his mouth shut, preventing himself from whimpering like a six year old. "Don't worry. This won't hurt…much." The man stated in a low, scary voice, ending in evil laughter. Marcus looked at the man in horror and was just about to scream as the man began to bring his hands down, but something stopped him.

Or someone.

"Marcus! Baby!"

Saved by the girlfriend.

He looked back to see Camille looking around for him and turned back around to find the man gone.

_What the hell?_ Marcus thought as he continued to stare ahead of him, ignoring his girl's calls. What was that all about? This big ass weird looking dude was about to attack and the next second he was gone. Had he been dreaming this?

As Marcus felt the bump on the top of his head, that was all the confirmation he needed.

This was no dream. And for all Marcus knew, this man wasn't gone, and he wasn't going to leave him alone any time soon.

"Baby? Oh, there you are." Camille finally came up and looked down at her boyfriend worriedly as she saw his hand on his head. "Marcus, what happened? Why are you on the floor?"

Her voice shook him out of his thoughts and for the first time in forever, he thought up a quick lie. "Oh, I just fell." Of course she'd buy it. He always tripped. And well, he really did trip, but that wasn't the entire truth.

Camille rolled her eyes and smirked as she grabbed his shoulder, lifting him up. "Right."

Walking with his arm draped over her shoulders, Marcus looked back paranoid.

Meanwhile…

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU COULDN'T DO IT?" The princess of evil yelled through the phone as she locked herself in the bathroom. Who would hear her? The music was loud as hell and no one could get in so she was good.

"_His girl was comin'!"_

"WHO THE FUCK CARES? YOU SHOULD'VE KNOCKED HER ASS OUT TOO!"

"_Why are you even after them? I thought you just wanted afro boy."_ Mr. Hulk responded, a little annoyed at her yelling his ear off.

"I do! I'm takin' no chances! No one's about to be on my case! They already got a lead on me!" She argued.

The big guy groaned irritably. _"That's your fault. You didn't have to be all flirty with the nigga."_

Briana rolled her eyes sarcastically. "Oh, I'm sorry that the guy is so attractive. How will you ever forgive me?"

"_Briana."_ He warned her. _"Let's not forget who you're dealin' with. Just because we family don't mean you could treat me any kind of way."_

"Shut up and start knockin' niggas out!" She yelled, trying to avoid what he just said and quickly hung up the phone. She knew he would probably turn on her one day. She always treated him like crap. Even when they were kids, she'd make fun of him and try to get him to do whatever she wanted. And because of his weak mind, he followed. Over the years, he grew to be abnormally strong, physically. He mentally grew strong as well, but for some reason, he still feels like he has to be under some type of control. So who better to do so than his maniac of a cousin?

He couldn't even deny it. His cousin was insane. But he was too, for actually following through with her plans. At first, as kids, the things they did were petty, like anything any other regular juvenile delinquent would do.

But something about Briana was off. And it didn't take him long to realize it. Not long at all.

In fact, he first witnessed her outlandishness as the two were in kindergarten. Briana was an evil little thing. She used to throw sand in peoples' faces, push people off of slides and swings, lie, steal, and throw temper tantrums. And all the while, she'd blame her insanity on other kids, causing them to get into trouble while she thought of more and more things to do to cause trouble.

One day, as the kids were in the playground, some kids were running around as Briana and her cousin sat in the sandbox. The kids were having so much fun, they didn't notice where they were going and one of them stepped on Briana's hand, earning a shriek out of her.

"OH! Sorry!" The girl nervously apologized, but Briana was hearing it. She quickly stood up and walked right into the girl's face.

"Yeah, you are sorry." She responded in a grave voice, as her cousin stared at her with a look of slight horror. Without thinking twice about it, Briana brought her right hand around the girl's back and yanked her long braided ponytail extremely hard, eliciting a cry from the little girl.

When she finally stopped, the girl ran off and cried all the way to the teacher.

And even then, Briana got away with it.

Her cousin knew from that day on out, that Briana was definitely not someone to take lightly.

* * *

"Riley, Stacia, come here." Jazmine ordered as she grabbed the two of them by their hands. Riley quickly released his hand from her grip and wrinkled his nose.

"Damn, Jaz'. Get off me." He didn't like people suddenly touching him like that.

Unless it was Stacia.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Riley, this is _important_." She emphasized. Riley stared at her for a few until it finally dawned on him.

"Oh, aiight." He agreed and stood up. Stacia still grabbed Jazmine's hand, but she was confused. "Come on baby."

She didn't know what was going on, but she shrugged and followed them, releasing her grip from Jazmine.

* * *

"WHAT?" Stacia exclaimed angrily after she read Huey's text. All of the friends nodded. "And why the _fuck_ am I the last to know?" She was really heated.

Caesar shook his head. "Stacia, calm down. We have to be rational about this."

"Yeah, baby. Chill." Riley said. Stacia just glared at him.

"Chill? You want me to chill after this silly bitch texted my nigga, warnin' him to break up with Jazmine just so she could get with him? Ha! I think not! And what the hell did she say to you Caesar? 'Tell your friend to shut up' or somethin' like that? Bitch is lost if she think I'ma stand for this!" She ranted as Jazmine stared at her with wide eyes and everyone else sighed or shook their heads. "This bitch threatened Cindy's life and ya'll standin' around here actin' all calm and collected and what not. Shit, I say forget diplomacy, let's go postal!" She went on as the crew groaned. When she was upset, she let it all out and she could give a damn who heard or saw.

"Stacia, be quiet!" Riley yelled. Everyone looked at him in silence as he sighed heavily. "Stacia, we _have _to be calm about this. If we act crazy like you just did, they'll know we're onto them."

Whoa.

Caesar raised a brow. He knew Riley was smart, but this dude just spoke proper English.

"So you _can_ speak with the exception of Ebonics after all. Congratulations, my nigga." Caesar joked.

Huey and Riley looked at each other and then back at Caesar slanting their heads a bit.

"Did you just, congratulate me/him for talking?" They asked in unison. The girls laughed, except for Stacia.

"Okay, so after ya'll done calmed me down." She sarcastically remarked. "What are we gonna do?"

Riley snorted. "Baby, what you mean we?" Stacia glared as Jazmine shook her head. Everyone else just sighed as they sensed an argument coming on.

"I mean _we_! As in all six of us!" She yelled.

"Y'know, I really like that fact you all seem to forget there's a little girl sleeping in here!" Huey yelled as his annoyance grew. He's had enough of this bullshit. Stacia was about sit down and shut up and listen to what he had to say. "Now everyone, sit down, shut up and listen to what I have to say." He firmly, but silently commanded as he looked at Kayla, still sleeping.

Riley rolled his eyes, muttering something about Kayla not hearing them and everyone else soundlessly sat on either Riley or Huey's beds.

Predictably, Jazmine sat on the edge of Huey's bed along with Caesar, Huey and a sleeping form behind them as the others sat across from them on Riley's.

"Now," He started. "Riley, we're not about to exclude anyone. If Cindy and Jazmine are in this," He continued, rolling his eyes as he mentioned that, "Then Stacia is too. Now we haven't exactly come up with a plan, but right now, I say we should test her. Test her, but don't get out of character. Since we don't talk to her, neither one of us should just walk up to her and start a conversation, because she'll know." He continued to explain as everyone nodded.

"So, if we don't talk to her, how are we gonna test her?" Cindy asked as Stacia nodded in agreement.

Huey shrugged.

"If ever you bump into her, just compliment her or somethin' without soundin' too obvious."

"But you know her ass is stuck up and she gon' act like she don't wanna talk to us." Cindy stated, waving her hand in the air.

"True." Caesar agreed, "But we can try." He tried to reason with everyone as they all nodded, except Huey.

"But yo, I-"

Just then, the door slowly creaked open, causing Riley to stop in mid sentence and everyone looked at the door, anticipating the unexpected visitor.

Walking in was none other than Marcus O'Neal.

"Marcus?" Huey asked, not really feeling like dealing with a slow nigga right this minute. "What you want?"

"Huey!" Jazmine scolded as Huey rolled his eyes. "Hey Marcus!" she greeted, but he didn't respond to her.

Everyone looked at him, wondering why he acted like he didn't hear her. He always greeted people, especially the females. It was just a respect thing. So his weirdness wasn't taken unnoticed.

"Yo, what's up?" Riley asked. Marcus shook his head before responding.

"Man…do ya'll normally got big niggas beatin' up on people at ya'll parties?" He responded, rubbing the bump that formed on his head earlier.

The entire crew looked at each other with the widest eyes of the night and a few of them dropped their jaws as they looked back at Marcus.

"You saw a what?" Cindy exclaimed.

Marcus was confused. What a surprise.

"Why ya'll lookin' at me like th-"

"What did he look like?" Riley interrupted him, his voice growling in rising anger. The recollection of what happened to Cindy was still pretty fresh in his mind.

Marcus drew his eyebrows together. "Okay…am I missin' somethin' here?" He asked. He knew something was wrong.

At that, Jazmine and Riley looked at Huey, confused whether Marcus should know or not. After all, that was their boy.

But he talked too damn much. And Lord knows this boy couldn't be quiet for that long.

So as they looked back at their friend, they finally decided…

…that they'd just have to solve this thing quickly, because they needed all the help they could get and they didn't even know how much help they needed. Just how many people were helping Briana? They didn't know.

So as Huey stated before, no one was excluded.

"Alright, Marcus, go downstairs and get Lamaar and tell him to come on." Riley ordered his friend as Marcus hesitantly left, not understanding anything that just happened. But he would find out soon though.

"Right now, I'ma need some heavy reinforcement." Riley added, picking up his phone and dialing a number. He pushed the speaker phone button and placed it on his bed. The crew just silently waited as they continued to hear the dial tone. Suddenly, a groggily voice picked up.

"_Hello?"_

"Ed?"

"_Yeah, who this?" _Ed asked, waking up from his sleep, or something. Riley couldn't tell, nor did he care.

"It's Riley." He responded. "And uh, you might wanna wake yo' ass up. This is somethin' serious."

* * *

"You plant it on the wall yet?" Briana silently asked as the party began to die down. It was pretty late now. The time read 12:30 and people had things to do tomorrow.

Well, not really, but still. It was past curfew.

The bottom line is, she couldn't shout out her frustration or just speak in a normal voice, because people would hear her for sure.

So she whispered.

"_Yep. Right under their window."_ Her cousin replied in satisfactory. Briana made a face.

"How did you do that?" She asked in disbelief. This dude just planted C4 right under the brothers' window, which was on the second story. Neither of them had a ladder, so how the hell _did_ he do that?

"_Don't worry about all that. Just know that the deed is done."_ Her cousin replied defiantly. She just shrugged. He was right. He did what she told him, so no need to dwell on that.

"Okay, good job. I think we're done for the day."

"Really?"

"Yes, _really_. What were you expecting?" She asked agitatedly. The big man rolled his eyes.

"Alright." He just stated as the two hung up. His big self, surprisingly, but quietly fled the scene as Briana tried to think of ways to get out of the house without being spotted.

Getting caught was the last thing she needed.

She pulled a silver object, identical to the one she handed to her cousin hours earlier and attached it to the wall right next to the light switch.

She just hoped to God that Huey wasn't the one to walk into the bathroom or else her plan would surely falter, along with her sick, twisted little heart.

* * *

Now, don't hate me! I warned you this chapter wasn't that good!

But please review though! Thank you kindlyy! :)


	14. Crossing The Line

Hey _hey_ hey! What's happenin'?

Yeah, I'm corny. But hello again lovely people!

Trust and believe I have a good reason as to why it took me so long to update, but first,

SHOUTOUTS!

To Miss Ace Thank You (lol, girl, the food was gone the day it was made. sorry), MissG2020, jayjai107, Youngkong313 (Lmao!), Bloody Kirai (Idk why your name didn't show up the last time, :/), & Shellie B! (hey, well the computer wasn't being very nice lol)

The comments had me rollin' lol. Ya'll are truly the best. No BS.

Now, my dad's in school, and since he's about to get his Master's degree and he's in the Honors program, he has a crapload of work to do! So all this long time I've been trying to continue with my story, he always had to get on the computer and by the time he was done, I WAS SLEEP! Ugh! Could they just give him a break? He's about to graduate for goodness sake!

Anyways, that's my excuse. :/ So I'm terribly sorry for keeping you guys waiting. But here it is!

Oh and this chapter is long as hell, so be prepared to do some readin'! :D

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE BOONDOCKS FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD! I'M NO THIEF!

Oh yeah, I almost forgot...

NOSAMA NOSAMA NOSAMA!

I mean, I'm not one to get excited over someone's death, but I really could care less. He was responsible for killing all those people, you think I care if he's dead? Psshh! Shoot, I even knew people whose families died in that plane crash. So as far as we know, justice is served.

Watch out for his niggas though. :/

Anywho, the story!

* * *

CHAPTER 14: CROSSING THE LINE

"Great party!" "Yo, this shit was live as hell mane!" "Man, when ya'll throwin' another one? I'm down!" "See ya'll at school!" "Ya'll are the best!"

People shouted compliments left and right about the party as they were heading out the door. According to them, this party was the most live party of the year. And the thing was, it was at the _Freeman's _house. Hmm, who knew?

Mingled in with the crowd was that oh so familiar petite Asian psycho, trying to make her way out before any one of the crew spotted her. Luckily for her, she was able to escape with no problem at all.

As soon as the crazy teen stepped out of the house, she ran as fast as she could in her mysterious gear and disappeared into the darkness.

Inside the house were the crew, Hiro, Kayla, Marcus, Lamaar and Camille.

Huey, Riley and Jazmine explained to Lamaar and Marcus about the entire Briana situation approximately two hours ago and after a minor freak out from Marcus, everyone decided to keep their minds off of it for the rest of the night. They barely had a good time and the party was hype as hell, well…Jazmine and Huey barely had fun. So after talking to Hiro, he agreed to stay there a little longer and play a few songs after everyone left. Huey offered to pay him, but Hiro kindly declined the offer. He loved music and helping people out, so this was like a win-win situation for everyone.

Kayla, however, couldn't hang. By the look of her droopy eyes it was evident that she needed to catch up on some sleep, pronto.

Groggily, she walked over to Cindy, who sat on the living room couch nodding her head to All I Want Is You by Miguel. She placed her small hand on her big cousin's lap as her cousin looked down at her.

"Cindy? I'm tired." She half-informed and half-pleaded in a small voice. "Can we go?"

Cindy looked into the little girl's eyes and noticed that she was worn out. Cindy sort of felt bad for not asking her if she wanted to leave earlier. Instead of showing her sympathy for the girl, she smiled sweetly.

"Sure, Kay." She agreed. "But don't you wanna say bye to everyone?" She asked, but regretted asking that as the little girl groaned. Cindy giggled.

"It's okay, you don't got to do th-"

"BYE EVERYONE!" Kayla yelled as everyone stopped what they were doing to look at the sleepy little girl. Before she did that, Riley and Stacia were dancing (no, not grinding or twerking…Kayla was there) while Riley playfully lip synced the song as Stacia laughed. Huey stood against the living room wall nodding his head to the beat, even though he didn't necessarily care for the song. Jazmine and Caesar were having a little dance contest (of course Jazmine was winning…she's on the dance team for cryin' out loud!). Lamaar, Marcus and Camille were the judges.

"Bye Kayla!" They responded before resuming to what they were just doing. Cindy playfully pouted.

"Dang, okay! I guess I gets no love!" She yelled as everyone eyed her, some of them smirked and shook their heads.

"Girl, this whole party was a celebration for you." Stacia responded as she continued to dance with Riley. Cindy smiled and shrugged.

Riley had his eyes transfixed on his girl, so it took him a minute to register that Cindy was going home.

_Wait. Cindy's leavin'?_ He suddenly stopped dancing altogether, and in doing so, Stacia gave him a perplexed look.

"What?" She questioned slowly. He looked at her for a second before leaning into her to whisper in her ear, just in case Kayla, Camille or Hiro heard.

"Baby, don't you think she gon' need someone to walk with her after all of this?" He asked. Backing away, he saw the expression on her face. It looked like…disappointment. But why? "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just…" She started, a blush reaching her cheeks. _Very _unfamiliar. "…I just want you all to myself right now." She responded sincerely, smiling at her boyfriend, boring into those wine-colored orbs as he did the same to her grey ones. Riley smiled back and kissed her forehead.

"Aw, Stacia I hear you, but Cindy's in danger, along with the rest of us." He explained as he looked at her sympathetically. Stacia sighed in defeat.

"I know, I know." She began to hold her head down, but Riley lifted it up with an index finger.

"But…if it's really that important to you, I'll stay." He genuinely compromised with yet another smile. Stacia beamed and kissed him twice quickly on the lips.

"Y'know," She started. "I hate feeling like I'm so clingy, but I can't help it. I love you too much and sometimes, I get like that." She tried to explain, but Riley shushed her.

"Baby, it's aiight. I don't think you too clingy." He reassured, "And I love you too."

"Ya'll niggas might as well get a room, cause we all know what this gon' lead to." Cindy loudly remarked as she walked over to the couple, Kayla nowhere in sight. Stacia blushed and rolled her eyes as Riley did the same.

"Be quiet." Stacia playfully warned. As she looked past Cindy, she noticed a certain five year old wasn't with Cindy anymore. "So, gangsta princess, where's Kayla?"

Cindy waved a hand in the air uncaringly. "Oh, she went upstairs real quick. She left her hoodie up there." She answered as Stacia responded with an 'Oh.'

As Cindy looked up at Riley, she saw him look at her with all seriousness. "What?" she inquired bewilderedly.

"Cindy, don't get mad," He said as Cindy drew her eyebrows together, anticipating the words that were about to follow. "But I think you gon' need someone to take you home. 'Cause after what happened last time…we, just don't need another one of _those_ moments." Riley honestly informed his best friend as she sighed, a little irritated. "See, I knew you was gon' get mad."

"Naw, I ain't mad." She responded rather quickly and sighed again. "I just…I feel like I'ma have to depend on people from now on. Shit don't sit well with me." She said as Stacia sympathetically nodded. Riley nodded as well, but not in sympathy. He was not about to feel bad for protecting his friend. Hell no.

"Yeah, but as soon as this shit blow over, you won't have to worry 'bout that." He stated as she nodded. "But as of now, you gon' need someone to assist yo' ass." He said, pointing to her.

"True." She replied in a low voice. "Aiight then, c'mon nigga." She was about to walk off, completely forgetting about Kayla for a second.

"Yeeah, about that…" Riley trailed off. Cindy sighed heavily as she turned back around to face him.

"Nigga, what now?"

"…I'm not gon' be the one walkin' you home." He notified her apologetically. Cindy just rolled her eyes.

"Fine." She said, sighing.

Okay, so maybe it was a good thing to not have Riley walk with her. She still couldn't help but feel some type of way about him, and if they walked together, she probably would say, or do, something either embarrassing or regretful. Neither one of those choices sounded too good.

But he did save her life and with that knowledge, her crush for him grew and transitioned into love. Lord, she really needed to get over him. He was not going to love _her_. He was in love with his girlfriend, and she loved him back. It'd be rather foolish of Cindy to impose on such a rare, yet beautiful relationship.

Turning on her heel, she sighed as that realization hit her. Riley would never be hers, and she'd have to deal with that fact. She had to. What other choice did she have?

Cindy decided to throw those thoughts to the back of her head, trying to ignore her feelings for her best friend, and walked over to Caesar and Jazmine. She did not have time for drama in her life.

"Jazzy, you killin' 'em!" Camille shouted, cheering on her good friend. Jazmine just giggled as she smoothly glided her way around Caesar, playfully taunting him. Caesar put on a false angry expression and threw up some unknown gang sign to indicate his _gangsterness_.

Yeah right.

"Hey." Cindy blurted out, abruptly causing her friends to stop. "Can someone please walk me home?" As she looked at everyone's amused faces she groaned. "It's Riley's idea! Can someone do it?" She pleaded in annoyance. Camille was confused as to why she couldn't just walk home by herself. She was seventeen for Heaven's sake!

But she didn't know why though. Everyone else, on the other hand, did.

Jazmine looked to Caesar, expecting him to say something as she arched her eyebrow. Caesar got the message and nodded. "I'll go." He gave in and walked over to Cindy. "Where's Kayla?" he inquired as he looked around, spotting teenagers all over.

"She-" Cindy began to say, but a very familiar somebody cut her off.

"Right here!" Kayla piped, despite her desperate need of rest.

Caesar, Cindy, Camille, Jazmine and Lamaar all smiled as Marcus, not paying attention, started to dance to the music.

"Okay, c'mon ya'll." Cindy announced.

"Wait." Caesar said. "Huey, yo can I use your car?" he asked as Huey chocked his eyebrow.

"Uh, no?"

Caesar rolled his eyes. "C'mon man, I ain't gon' mess it up again, I promise." He pleaded, but realized there was no use. Once someone messed up something of Huey's, they'd never use it again.

"I said no." He defiantly argued and left it at that. Stacia rolled her eyes as she noticed Huey being an ass to his friend and handed Caesar her keys.

"Here" She said. "Now don't damage my ride." She seriously warned. Caesar nodded and thanked her before backing away.

As the three headed towards the door, they said their goodbyes to their friends and were gone.

But a second later…

"Jazmine! I'm comin' back!" Caesar playfully warned as he stuck his head in the door. Jazmine rolled her eyes and laughed loudly before shouting back.

"Yeah, okay!"

Then, the door closed.

Since Riley and Stacia was in their own world, smiling at each other as they danced, Camille and the two best friends outside the crew were talking about something Jazmine couldn't hear, and Huey was by himself, Jazmine decided to walk over to him slyly.

He caught her inching closer and closer to him and put on a small smirk. She smirked as well as she stood to the right of him on the wall. Huey's eyes diverted from her to the space in front of him, occupied by Riley and Stacia all of a sudden giggling and laughing.

Jazmine giggled a little as she noticed Huey playfully trying to ignore her, but she did the same as he did, the smile never leaving. Huey looked at her from the corner of his eye and his smirk grew. They were so goofy.

"Nice party, Freeman." Jazmine playfully stated with amusement all in her voice as she tried hard not to laugh, still making no eye contact. Huey shook his head, but played along.

"Thanks, and might I ask who you are?"

"Well, certainly." She continued. "I'm Jazmine Dubois, professional dancer." She stated, turning to her boyfriend before sticking her delicate hand out for him to shake. Huey eventually took it.

"That's nice. I'm Huey Freeman, Revolutionary." He said as Jazmine's cheeks puffed up. She was on the brink of laughter.

"That's cool." She started in a low voice before giggling. Huey snorted and rolled his eyes playfully.

"You, ma'am, are goofy." He declared as he pointed to her. Jazmine grinned.

"Yeah, whatever." She jokingly retorted before kissing his right cheek, his cheeks flaring up. She giggled once again as she took notice. It was amazing to see Huey react to something as small as a kiss on the cheek. Huey just smiled a little and looked ahead of him again.

Just then, Hiro switched the track to something else.

As the beat commenced, Huey's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. He looked up to see Riley looking at him with the same wide eyes and a smirk.

"Damn." He muttered in disbelief. Jazmine eyed him, puzzled completely, all silliness disappearing.

"What?" She asked. Huey looked in her direction and shook his head.

"Nothin', I just haven't heard this song in a long time." He explained.

In other words, that was his _song_!

Riley's too.

Jazmine knowingly smirked. "What, do you like it or something?" Huey raised his eyebrow as he looked down at her again.

"That's an understatement." He responded, earning a small chuckle from his girlfriend. "Mint Condition? Do you know how hard it is to find their songs?" He added causing her to chuckle again.

Man, Mint Condition. Honestly, they were one of the few musical groups that both Huey and Riley truly admired. They were so versatile and smooth and every song they came out with were, well…amazing! Beautiful, even.

When they were little, they had the Mint Condition CDs on repeat and they'd often sing together, imitating the group. Most of the time Riley would lead, but sometimes Huey had those moments where he wanted to be the one to do so as well.

But who the hell were _they_ to tell anyone about this? Any of this?

The only time they felt comfortable singing was when they were around each other, and for so long, they tried to tell people they weren't talented, but neither of them were really good liars.

And besides, Granddad had a big ass mouth.

But as the years went by, the Mint Condition CDs vanished somehow and neither of them could get into LimeWire because of that damn scanner that always popped up and prevented LimeWire from downloading music. So they hadn't heard from Mint Condition for a long time.

"Wow," Jazmine started off. "Huey Freeman has a soft side for love songs." She playfully taunted Huey as she lightly pushed his shoulder. He rolled his eyes.

"Jazmine, do you know how talented these people are? And how underrated they are?" He began his lecturing, but decided against it since he wanted to hear the song. "Nevermind." He said, averting his gaze up ahead as Jazmine just shrugged and did the same.

_I never thought I'd really find  
Someone so beautiful and kind  
Oh, what you've done to me  
With just the little things you do  
You've got me crazy over you  
And it's getting stronger._

Unknowingly, Huey softly sang along with the song, only Jazmine being able to hear it. She cocked her head to the side, looking up at him and noticed that he didn't even realize what he was doing. She smiled and shook her head.

_If Stacia was over here right now…_She thought as her boyfriend continued to sing along with the song.

_When I'm with you, I fall deeper in love, swingin'  
This feeling is the one thing my heart is sure of  
So I…_

On the other side of the room, Riley couldn't help it. He stopped and pulled away from his girl a little bit and sang rather loudly.

Not in his good singing voice though. Not at all.

_I WAIT FOR THE DAAYYY  
SO WE CAN GO SWAANNNG  
WON'T YOU LOOK RIGHT…MY…WAAYY_

"Riley! Don't ruin it!" Huey yelled as he grew a little agitated. Riley just rolled his eyes and continued as his brother did the same.

_OH YOU SEND ME SWANGIN'  
YOU SEND ME SWAANNGIN'_

_OH YOU SEND ME SWANGGGIN'_

It was right then that Huey realized he'd just stopped singing.

_Wait…When the hell did I start singing? _He internally asked himself.

Then, he froze.

He turned to his left to see a smirking Jazmine looking back at him.

Amusement present all in her face.

His cheeks collected so much heat, one would've thought he was about to swoon from a heat stroke.

Jazmine grinned sweetly. "Aww! Why'd you stooopp?" she playfully whined. Huey rolled his eyes once again.

"Jazmine," he said, his way of pleading her to stop. Jazmine loved to hear Huey sing. He sounded amazing, and sort of resembled the lead singer in this group. No wonder he liked this song so much.

Jazmine rolled her eyes and his plea and smirked, walking in front of him. Since Huey wasn't about to do it, she was.

Swaying left to right along with the song, she mimicked Stokley's voice, singing along with him.

_Just thinkin' 'bout you  
And all the things that we could do  
Together as one, baby_

After successfully doing so, she grabbed Huey's hands, forcing him to sway with her.

Which of course, he didn't, but his hands did.

_If only you could see  
How sweet your love is to me  
So Heavenly_

Huey was actually rather surprised that Jazmine knew this song word for word. He was pretty sure she's heard it before, since she had that LimeWire thing going on at home and the song played on the radio once every nine months, but he didn't think she really _knew_ the song. He underestimated her yet again.

Great job, Huey.

Huey smirked as he trained his eyes on Jazmine. The way she moved her hips so casually and bobbed her head left to right was beyond cute.

Holding her hands, he felt the sudden urge to pull her closer and slow dance with her…

But he decided against it. Instead, he continued to sing the song with her, whether it was intentional or _un_intentional.

_Knowing the way to say just how I feel for you  
Swingin'_

Then, Riley came back in with Stacia: the both of them shouting rather obnoxiously.

_SEE EVERY DAY THAT PASSES  
MY HEART SWINGS CLOSER TO YOOOOOUUUU_ _HO HAaaAAaaAaaAA!_

Jazmine giggled at her friends' singing as her and Huey continued. Huey did the ad libs while Jazmine just sang the chorus.

_I wait for the day (sweet gentle swing)  
So we can go swing  
Won't you swing right...my…way (yeah yeah, yeah yeah)  
Oh you send me swingin'  
You send me swingin'(you send me)  
Oh you send me swingin'_

As Hiro continued to DJ, he noticed everyone moving or singing along with the song (especially Riley and Stacia). He couldn't really hear Huey or Jazmine, but he thought it was cute to see them smiling at each other while they mouthed the words to the song. He looked to the middle of the floor where Lamaar, Marcus and Camille were. Lamaar and Camille were clapping and rooting for Marcus as he danced his ass off.

He pleasantly sighed. Another successful party indeed. Another pleased crowd. It was beautiful.

Still shouting the lyrics to the song, Stacia finally took her eyes off of Riley and looked to her left, spotting Jazmine and Huey singing and swaying…well, Jazmine swayed. She grinned broadly and stopped singing.

"Baby, you see what I see?" She told Riley in a hushed tone. Riley looked at her and made a face. He didn't like people interrupting one of his favorite songs. Even if it was Stacia.

"What?" he asked, irritably. Stacia jerked her neck back and sucked her teeth.

"Nigga, don't get smart." She scolded. She then pointed to the couple. "Look. Jazmine and Huey are singin' together. Huey, your brother, is actually _singing_!" she silently exclaimed as Riley smirked and rolled his eyes.

"You don't know that. He probably just lip syncin'." Riley said waving his hand in the air, but shoot, he wasn't stupid. He knew his brother was sang along with _this_ song. It was impossible _not_ to.

Stacia just snorted.

"So what? I've never seen him do that before. He's always so damn grave, I didn't even expect him to do anything , let alone sing." She told her boyfriend as he, in turn, snorted as well.

"Baby, you doin' too much." He half-joked as she rolled her eyes.

"Whatever." She began. "I think it's cute." She added. Riley rolled his eyes in disinterest. "Don't do that!" Stacia scolded once again, causing Riley to snicker.

"Calm down, baby." He replied in a sweet voice, then looked down at his girl with a nice smile. She smiled back, but once his grin began to look a little more sinister, she stopped. "And since you really interested in them, lemme tell you what _this_ nigga said." Riley started, ending in another snicker.

"What?" Stacia asked in a hushed excited tone. Riley's sneaky smile was still plastered on his visage as he leant in her ear and whispered something.

Stacia's eyes grew as big as saucers. When he pulled away, he looked at his girl and couldn't help but crack up at her expression.

"No…" She responded in disbelief which made Riley laugh a little harder. "He said that?" Riley nodded his head as his braids swung around his neck. At first Stacia stared at him with a blank expression, but the next minute…

She was done! She was so weak that her legs nearly gave out. Riley couldn't help but laugh with her. The situation was funny, but her laughter was so daggone contagious that he had to laugh at that too.

Their laughter caused everyone to look at them to see what was going on.

"Hey, what's goin' on?"

Told you.

Riley and Stacia had enough strength to look at the person who'd said that, and once they did, they fell out again.

Huey and Jazmine raised their eyebrows and shook their heads. Lamaar, Marcus and Camille just shrugged.

Speaking of Camille, she had things to do in the morning and it was getting rather late. Shoot, it was already past 12:30.

"Hey guys!" she yelled, getting everyone's attention. "I'm leaving." She announced as everyone nodded. Marcus tried to protest, but when Camille was ready to go, it was final. It always was.

"No babe, don't go yet." He pleaded. Camille shook her head and sighed.

"Marcus, I got things to do tomorrow and if I don't wake up when my alarm goes off, I'm blaming you." She half-joked.

"What the hell does that have to do with me?"

Apparently Marcus didn't take those very well. Camille just rolled her eyes. She didn't feel like getting into this again.

"Marcus, I'm leavin'. You comin' or not?" She asked in a no-nonsense tone. Marcus seemed to contemplate for a minute, but eventually sighed heavily and nodded as Lamaar snickered with Riley.

"Nigga, you whipped." Lamaar joked as Marcus scoffed.

"Yellow nigga, shut up." He told his best friend. "You comin'?"

At first Lamaar was going to say no, but he was feeling a little tired himself, so what was the use in staying?

He shrugged. "I guess."

Before leaving, all three of them waved goodbye to the crew minus Caesar and Cindy and left out the door.

Now, left in the house was Huey, Jazmine, Riley, Stacia and Hiro.

Wondering where Granddad is, huh?

Shoot, after his little talk with Hiro about some big party at his house, he hauled ass out of that place and got him a room at a hotel for the night. He won't about to be around no obnoxious teenagers. Nuh uh.

So with the house all to themselves, everyone was fine. Better than fine. Shoot, they were ecstatic. This was a rare occasion, so they were about to savor this.

After Mint Condition's U Send Me Swingin' was over, Hiro decided to play around and put on Soulja Boy's 'Donk'.

Oh _hell_ naw.

If it was one artist in particular Huey couldn't stand, it had to be Soulja Boy. That nigga just fucked up hip-hop for everybody. And can you believe it? Riley doesn't even like the nigga either, but he could care less when it was a party.

Shit was hype.

"Aww yeah!" Hiro yelled in the microphone, amusement in his voice as Huey slightly glared at him for choosing that song. He ignored it though. "Now I know ya'll ladies want to dance!"

And he was right.

Both girls backed away from their boyfriends a little to have some room to dance. As the beat started both of them clapped all in their boyfriends' faces as Huey rolled his eyes and Riley smirked.

_She got a donk_

As Soulja Boy repeated that line about three-eleven times, Jazmine popped her back with her hands on her hips in a playful manner. She didn't really give it her all because…well, it was Huey.

And it was kind of embarrassing.

Huey smirked at her dancing as she tried hard not to giggle.

Riley and Stacia on the other hand were gettin' it in.

Stacia had backed Riley into one of the four walls and did some hot dance moves in front of him that turned him on increasingly. Then she did the unthinkable, just to toy with him.

She turned around and bent over, leaning her backside against his front side.

_Oh shit._

At that, Riley's eye's damn near bulged out of his head and a satisfied smirk etched his features. Stacia almost giggled as she could picture Riley's face right then. It was so funny to play with his emotions.

She began to move up and down against him rapidly (yes you guys, she's twerking), and Riley found himself reacting to her movements. Luckily for him, no one could hear the little hiss that passed through his lips. This was all too much.

Especially since they've done _it_ plenty of times. Shoot, this was just the teaser.

Hiro noticed the frisky teens and snickered before putting the mic against his mouth once again. "Okay, Stacia! I see you! Go 'head and work it girl!" He encouraged as Stacia finally let out that little bit of laughter she was holding in. Huey and Jazmine didn't even notice what the couple was doing until Hiro said something and once they saw the display, both of them blushed.

Harshly.

Not because of the fact that Riley and Stacia did it without a care in the world. They could care less about that.

But they both thought of how it would be if that were _them_ dancing together like that. And Huey could see Riley's overly satisfied reaction on his face. If Jazmine were to do something like that, he wouldn't know what to do with himself.

So yeah…that moment was definitely an awkward one.

But Hiro wanted to be an ass and add something else.

"I know ya'll wanna do it too!" The Asian bellowed in the mic as the couple slightly glared at him with red cheeks. He just continued to smile at them. "Aw, c'mon. It's just dancing! No harm done, right?" He tried to assure the couple, ignoring their flushed cheeks.

Riley and Stacia heard him, but they didn't care. They were too busy doing their own thing.

In all honesty, Jazmine did want to do it. She thought it'd be comical and entertaining to dance with Huey like that, but she didn't think Huey would even follow through with it.

Oh well, she was not about to sit there and _wonder_. All she had to do was ask.

She gave Huey a look over and her blush deepened.

"She lookin' at you." Hiro quickly informed Huey, laughing as Jazmine sent him a death-like glare. "Sorry." He apologized unconvincingly.

Huey looked at her anyways and as he saw the look on her face, he already knew what was up and his eyes grew.

"Jazmine!" he silently exclaimed, his blush deepening as well. At any other time, Jazmine would've turned her head shyly or apologized, but his reaction was just too funny.

So she giggled incessantly, bending over a little.

_Sippin' on some that match my shirt  
I like her, her, her, her, and her  
I want them to do that over her! (over her!)_

_She got a donk_

"Ssss." Riley hissed through his teeth in pleasure as Stacia continued her indecent grinding against him, but this time, she heard him. She looked over her shoulder, still moving, and shot him a smile.

"Aww, my baby can't handle it?" She teased. Riley ignored it and hissed again.

"Damn." He muttered as Stacia laughed and continued, alternating between slow grinds and fast ones.

_Shake some wit it (Shake some wit it)  
Shake some wit it (Shake some wit it)  
Shake some wit it (Shake some wit it)  
Shake some wit it (Shake some wit it)  
Shake some wit it (Wow, wow)  
Shake some wit it (Wow, wow)  
Shake some wit it (Wow, wow)  
Shake some wit it (Wow, wow)_

"Aw, c'mon Huey. I was just playing!" Jazmine half-lied, "And even if I wanted to do that, it's not like we'd be having sex or anything." That last statement alone made the two of them blush even more than they did before. Huey rolled his eyes.

"Mm hmm." He didn't really know what to say. Shoot, he'd be a damn lie if he said he didn't want her to dance on him, but he knew he'd get a little too excited. He may've had self control, but he was still a hormonal teenager.

Of course, he blamed it on his nigga instincts.

Jazmine girlishly giggled as she saw Huey's cheeks reddening. She knew what he was thinking. How could she not? She's known that boy for years and she knew what bothered him, what excited him, what upset him, what interested him…all of that. And since now they were a couple, she seemed to know him even more.

Huey also knew that Jazmine knew what he was thinking, so he decided to avoid her giggling and focused his attention to his brother and his girl.

"Yeah, so Coach was trippin' hella hard last week, right? Talkin' 'bout some 'I-may-not-be-ya-Coach-but-you-will-respect-me-young-lady! I-ain't-ya-Daddy-I-ain't-ya-Mama-I ain't-ya' blah, blah, blah. I got bored _real_ quick. That nigga was talkin' all fast and shit and I was 'bout to ask him if he carried breath mints on the regular cause Lord knows that nigga needed 'em." Cindy told Caesar as he just laughed at her story. They were still in the car, in the front seats while Kayla was sprawled all on the back seat, sleeping.

Cindy was talking about that one day in gym when some girls on her basketball team, along with her, decided to play Horseshoe. It was Cindy's turn and she was about to make a perfect shot, but that tall, dark skinned dude Tony (the one from her chemistry class, yes) distracted her. He was _damn _fine. Of course Cindy knew this and normally she wouldn't have been fazed by his appearance…

But this guy was shirtless and his muscles were sculpted almost perfectly. His six packs looked more like a four pack, but still, he was fine!

Uncaringly, she shot the ball wherever she thought the hoop might've been.

Aha! Wrong.

All at once, as the Coach turned around for no apparent reason, after scolding some girl for not holding the jump rope in her hand the right way, the orange Spalding collided with his face and the entire gym grew silent, except for a sudden 'Damn' outburst from Riley on the far side of the gym.

It wasn't as if they were scared of the Coach or anything, they just couldn't believe someone would even do something like that…it was like they were begging for a lecture of some kind.

So you basically get the idea. The Coach fussed Cindy out without giving her a chance to apologize or anything.

"So after that, the nigga said he was gon' give me detention if I ever thought about doin' somethin' like that again. Pssh, nigga don't own me. I do what I please, ya heard me?" She went on as Caesar almost crashed because he was so weak. Cindy was so serious, but she wasn't angry and that's what made it so funny. She looked so cute to him when she was feisty like that.

And the story itself was hilarious too. He would've done anything to see the look on the Coach's face.

"Oh shit." He silently let out, calming down. "Damn. See, I told you that nigga be trippin'. You lucky you got Coach Salem." Cindy rolled her eyes as he mentioned _that_ name.

"Please. She get on my nerves too."

"Yeah, but she don't be all up in your face, breathin' your air now does she?" Caesar knowingly questioned with a smirk, keeping his eyes on the road. Cindy looked at him and smirked as well.

"Whateva , nigga." Code for, "Yeah, you right, but I don't want you to be'.

Caesar just snorted and pulled into Cindy's driveway and noticed something.

Her parents' car was missing.

Oh, excuse me, her parents' _cars_ were missing. Rich asses.

"Hey, your mom and dad here?" he asked. Cindy waited for him to park before answering.

"No, but it's Saturday night. They always busy during the week and they barely have time for each other, so recently they said they was gon' start goin' out every weekend." Cindy stated and just shrugged, trying to hide the sadness in her voice, but it didn't fully work out. Caesar knew better. He knew something about this bothered her, but he also knew not to pry. It wasn't his place. They were best friends but everyone still had their right to privacy. It was one of those unwritten laws.

And no, not like the one where you get a yacht, a mansion and two white women just for being called a nigga.

"You can come in if you want." She politely offered her friend. She didn't feel like being alone in the house with a sleeping kid. It made her feel uneasy now to know that she'd basically be alone in the house and if something did happen to her, no one would know. Kayla would be sleeping peacefully in the guestroom and wouldn't hear a sound. Not in that soundproof room.

God, her parents always had to upgrade everything. They cool people, but damn. We get it, you're rich!

Anyways…

Caesar's exterior was on chill mode, but his interior was full of excitement, with a hint of nervousness. He was about to be alone (almost) in his female best friend's house. It's not like they'd do anything anyways. She didn't like him like that and he respected her decision. No matter how much he wanted to change her mind, he just couldn't.

"Yeah, I could chill here for a little." He smoothly let out and finally turned the car off. Cindy smiled happily as she knew she didn't have to worry about anything right that second.

"Okay."

The both of them hopped out the front and opened both sides of the doors.

"I got her." Caesar sweetly offered and carefully lifted the little girl up and out the car. Cindy smiled and thanked him before slowly walking to the door while reaching in her pocket for her house keys. As she finally found them in her left back pocket, she put the key threw the door and opened it up…

To a trashed living room.

Cindy's eyes grew and immediate frustration practically radiated from her body. She was still frozen on the spot when Caesar suddenly walked behind her with the child in his arms and looked at the sight in front of him. He nearly dropped the girl.

"What…the fuck." Cindy said in a low, dangerous tone. She sure hoped this had nothing to do with that Briana thing because she did not have the energy nor the patience for that. All she wanted to do was sit back in the living room, drink a few Pepsi's, watch Menace II Society (for the billionth time) and order pizza. Was that too much to ask?

And now, she couldn't do a damn thing. She either had to get Caesar to walk with her to find the culprit who did such a thing, or she could leave and go to Kayla's parents' house instead. The only problem with that is that they lived forty five minutes away, so uh…hell no.

Caesar shook his head. He was growing rather tired of these little senseless pranks and games that girl Brianna was playing. He had a good mind to respond to the text on his phone that he knew who she was and if she didn't stop he'd do the unthinkable, but he decided against it. It was late. This problem needed to be handled in the morning. But first,

"Cindy, I'ma look around to see if someone's here. You take Kayla upstairs." He ordered. Cindy shook her head violently.

"No."

"Cindy."

"I said no, Ceez!" She started, in a nervous voice. Caesar was taken aback by her reaction. Was she really that scared? "I'm goin' with you." She declared, but Caesar protested.

"The hell you are." Cindy glared at him. "Look, just do what I say. I promise nothing's gonna happen." He promised her. Cindy just scoffed and laughed nervously.

"Nigga, please. I don't get scared. You ain't gotta make no promises." She replied. Caesar looked at her for a second, studying her facial features. He's known the girl long enough to tell when she was lying or not. She couldn't hide from him. He could read her like a book. She was just being so damn stubborn.

Caesar just sighed before handing Kayla to her big cousin cautiously. "Just do what I say, okay? It's for your own good." He guaranteed in a soothing voice, piercing his deep brown eyes into her ocean blue ones.

And for once in her 17 years of living, Cindy McPhearson actually felt intimidated; yet, calm looking into her dread-locked best friend's eyes. _What?_ She asked herself in thought. She was confused. Why was she feeling like this around Caesar?

The way he cared for her in that sweet gentle voice was enough to make her smile shyly and turn her head away.

And she did.

"Okay." She muttered in a small, rare voice.

It was then that Caesar realized he'd been staring into her pools for too long and he awkwardly stumbled back a bit and hit the door. Cindy's eyes grew as his coordination was a bit off and she chuckled a bit.

"Damn, since when have _you_ been the clumsy type?" she playfully asked, resorting back to her old self. Caesar just smirked and shrugged before finally closing the front door.

"Aiight, I'll go upstairs now." Cindy slowly let out as Caesar nodded awkwardly, the odd silence now present.

With Kayla in her arms, Cindy turned on her heels and grudgingly trotted up the stairs as Caesar smirked amusedly from behind. Once she was out of sight, Caesar let out a breath of relief. Man, if he stared at her any longer, he'd probably…well he didn't know what he'd do, but since Cindy wasn't feeling him, he knew he'd do something that'd upset her and possibly ruin their friendship.

But he could've sworn he'd seen her react to his gaze too. That timid response, that soft 'okay' she gave him was an indication that, well just maybe he wasn't imagining things.

Maybe Cindy did feel something.

And for once, it had nothing to do with Riley.

Caesar just shrugged and began to search the house. If he was really worried about Cindy's safety, he was not about to stand around and ponder all night.

It's been an hour since Hiro left and none of the four teens could sleep. They sat in the living room on the floor with Riley sitting to the right of Stacia, Stacia sitting to the right Jazmine, and Jazmine sitting to the right of Huey. They all faced the television which was on some music video channel.

Not that anyone was really paying attention to it. They were engrossed in a conversation.

One that didn't focus on Briana the psycho Blasian for once.

"Yo, when Granddad comin'?" Riley asked his older brother, earning a shrug from him.

"I don't know, maybe tomorrow." Huey responded nonchalantly. He didn't really care. He knew his Granddad was fine.

Riley then turned his gaze from his older brother and smirked wickedly at his chocolate colored girlfriend. Her eyes were glued to that piece of crap phone she now possessed, all because her idiot of a boyfriend liked it 'rough'.

Riley slightly winced as he recalled that moment. Damn, he really messed up. They were just about to get it on and because her stupid ass iPhone couldn't keep itself off the floor, he ruined it with his size eleven ACG Boots. Now his girl had to go through life with a rinky dink Tracfone.

Un-bee-lievable.

"Baby," Riley began, ignoring his recollection.

"Huh?" She lightly responded, turning her neck in his direction, but continuing to look down at her phone.

"Y'know what that means, right?" He asked delightfully, that is until he noticed her demeanor not change one bit.

"Yeah, yeah. That's good."

Okay, so she wasn't paying attention to him now?

Jazmine and Huey looked at the display uncaringly and shook their heads. They noticed Riley beginning to fume and Stacia paying more attention to the phone than her loving boyfriend.

A pointless argument was about to erupt.

"Damnit Stacia!" Riley half-yelled, partly because it was too damn late for all that and partly because he didn't like to yell at his girl.

Stacia turned her head to his direction and glared at him. "Nigga, I ain't deaf. What?"

"Oh, you ain't deaf?" Riley started as his irritation grew. "You ain't even hear what I just said!"

"Yes I did!" her irritation went up as well.

"Really? Then what did I say?"

"You said, 'Damnit Stacia'! What the hell do you want?"

Riley sighed heavily and slumped his back against the front of the couch. "Forget it, I'm not even in the mood anymore." His irritation was still there but his voice wasn't as harsh. Stacia rolled her eyes at his immature pouting and scooted closer to him.

"Hey." She softly spoke to her boyfriend as if he were a child. "Baby, don't be like that." Riley didn't say anything. He was just irritated and he wanted to watch this new lame ass Thugnificent video called 'Still I Rise'. Okay, not really…he was just mad at Stacia so he didn't feel like talking to her right then.

Inwardly, Riley slightly winced as he watched the sad attempt of a video. Him and Thug went way back. Shoot, that was his homie right there, but just like Snoop, he needed to stop making music. He just wasn't cut out for it anymore.

"This shit sad." He said, completely ignoring the way Stacia leant on his shoulder. _So now she wanna be all up on me._ He bitterly thought, but his mean attitude faltered as he felt her rub loving circles on his chest. _Damn, she always doin' this to me. I can't ever stay mad at her ass._

Hey, well that's love ain't it?

Jazmine's boredom decreased as she saw what Stacia did to Riley. It was so adorable and sweet. To calm Riley down was a challenge and it merely took his girlfriend twenty seconds. The way she lovingly leaned on him and smiled warmly was enough to make Jazmine go, "Aww…"

No one even looked in her direction. Huey just rolled his eyes as the other couple sat there in comfortable silence.

Jazmine turned to him and noticed his irritated expression and rolled her eyes. "Huey, stop looking so upset all the time. Cheer up." She sweetly tried to pump him up, but to no avail. He didn't even look in her direction as he raised that stupid eyebrow. Well, it was stupid to Jazmine at the moment.

"Yeah, whatever. All I know is Caesar better come back here with my car." Huey bluntly responded, training his eyes on that stupid video. Jazmine rolled her eyes.

"Huey, he didn't even drive your car. He drove Stacia's remember?" She reminded him, causing him to freeze automatically and think back. Jazmine just shook her head. "Wow, off all people I'd think you'd actually remember that." She went on, irritating Huey a bit. Huey scoffed and rolled his eyes again.

"Jazmine, it's late. It happens." He replied, not really feeling like getting into this with her.

Stacia all of a sudden stopped her loving gestures on her boyfriend and jerked her head up.

"Wait, that nigga still got my car!" She yelled in realization, abruptly standing up. Everyone just looked at her in shock due to her sudden outburst.

"Told you." Huey began. "That's why I never let him use my car."

Stacia ignored him and pulled out her cell phone. But instead of calling Caesar right away, she got a message from Caesar.

"Oh, so now he wanna text me." She said aloud as everyone uncaringly looked at her.

She hit that raggedy ass button her phone that read 'OK' and opened up the message.

But as she did so, and read it, she definitely knew the message didn't come from Caesar.

_Yeah, I did it._

_-Unknown-_

Briana blew out an exhausting breath of air. This shit was old. Briana we know it's you, damn. But what the hell did she do? And if she did something to Caesar, she was gonna through all rationale out the window. No more diplomacy. This was gonna end real soon.

"What did he do this time?" Huey replied not really giving a damn. Jazmine and Riley just looked at her, waiting for a response.

"Well," She started, her tone hard as stone. "The message definitely came from his phone, but it sho' won't him." Everyone then turned to look at her, Huey included, and lifted their eyebrows. "That bitch Briana did something, but I don't know what it is. All she said was 'Yeah, I did it.' What the hell does that mean?" She questioned as if the rest of them knew. They just shrugged and rolled their eyes.

"Yo, this shit is old and tirin'." Riley responded, resting the back of his head on the couch. "You might as well text that hoe back and tell her ass we know it's her. Shit, I'm tired of waitin'." He closed his eyes as he spoke in a raspy voice; a sign that rest would soon accompany him. Stacia sighed and sat back down next to Riley. She couldn't go anywhere without her car and everyone was beginning to look like they were about to pass out.

"Baby, you're just tired." She half-joked about the entire situation and leant her head against his chest. "But anyways, I hear you. And we will get to the bottom of this, but right now I need some sleep." She ended and closed her eyes right along with her boyfriend, but at that statement he cracked one eye open and looked down at her.

"Baby…don't you think your parents gon' trip if you not home?" He asked worriedly. Once he said that, Stacia opened her eyes halfway and looked at him with a mixture of sadness, hurt, and anger in her eyes. Riley didn't respond. He just waited on her answer.

"Don't." she warned him. "You know they don't care anyways." She added, her voice softening. Riley sighed.

"Baby, c'mon now-"

"I said. Don't." She demanded in a firm voice, shutting him up immediately. Jazmine and Huey just looked at the girl with worry. "Please, don't ruin this night for me." She begged, her tone softening once again.

Riley blinked back at her for a bit and finally nodded. He didn't feel like getting into with her right now anyways. "Thank you." She thanked him sweetly, laid back on his chest, and closed her eyes again.

Riley just looked down at her for quite some time before kissing her forehead sweetly. "Baby." He whispered, "C'mon. My bed's more comfortable than this." He offered. When she opened her eyes and raised her eyebrow, he shook his head. "Not like that." He smirked and lifted the both of them up off the ground.

"Shit, my ass hurt like a bitch." He exclaimed rubbing his backside as Huey shook his head and Jazmine smiled in amusement. Stacia just gave him a deadpanned look.

"Goodnight guys." Jazmine softly said earning a nod out of Riley and a wave from Stacia.

"Night." She responded, almost walking off, until,

BOOM!

A loud ass noise reverberated from upstairs causing all four teens to jolt and look at each other with worried looks.

"What the hell/heck!" Everyone shouted in unison. Who said 'heck'?

Take a wild guess.

Everyone ran as fast as they could to the stairs, nearly tripping over the steps, and themselves. Huey was the first one to reach the highest step with Riley in tow, than Jazmine and Stacia at the same time. Huey wasted no time in throwing his door open and once he did, he halted right on the spot, just as the rest of them did.

As they stared ahead, they couldn't even say anything.

The area right where the computer and the desk once was, was completely obliterated. No computer or desk was in sight. Some burnt remains were sprawled on the floor and on both of the brothers' beds, along with some bricks, but that was about it.

Both Riley and Huey clenched their teeth in rage and fury. Okay, someone was goin' down tonight!

Jazmine and Stacia narrowed their eyes evilly to the empty area that was now met with the outside world. They were both angry too. Briana took things a little too far. This chick just tried to kill the Freemans! What is her _deal_?

And if she was supposedly after Huey, then why was she trying to kill him?

"Y'know what," Riley finally spoke aloud in a 'don't fuck with me' voice. "On second thought, I'ma skip sleep tonight." And just like that, he walked over to his closet, silently thanked God that the explosion was minor, and opened it.

Huey knew exactly what his little brother was up to, and for once, he didn't try to stop him. Hell, he didn't _want_ to stop him.

Jazmine and Stacia were still silently glaring at the area and unknowingly clenched their hands into fists so tight that blood could've been drawn and they wouldn't have even known it. That's what anger did to a person.

"I." Jazmine started in a low octave through clenched teeth, causing the very upset others to look her way. "Am going, to kick. Her. Ass."

And the other three, despite their anger, dropped their jaws in shock. Riley's head was still buried in the closet, but his expression was just the same as the others.

_What the hell?_

Did…did Jazmine, Jazmine Dubois, just…curse?

"And I dare anybody to stand in my way." She, dared…as the other three were on mute. She was pretty damn intimidating right now, so it'd be smart not to mess with her. Huey just wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders, wincing at the look she shot him. She wasn't necessarily glaring at him, but her anger wasn't going anywhere. Not until this problem was resolved. And she wasn't going to sleep neither. Nope.

"Jazmine, normally I would disagree with the way your mind is processing right now," He began, ignoring the death-like glare from his girlfriend, "But, right now, I just don't care. Briana went way too far. Hell, she went too far when she had someone nearly do away with Cindy and I'll be damned if I let that crazy girl do that again; to any of us." He continued as her glare softened, but still remained. "So like Stacia said before, there's no time to be diplomatic."

Stacia blinked back at him in surprise. She never thought Huey would ever resort to anything other than a diplomatic approach.

Riley finally pulled his head out of the closet, along with a silver case and grinned wickedly. The other three looked at each other and shrugged as they walked over to where Riley was, Huey's arm falling off of Jazmine's shoulder.

Riley set the case down on his bed, brushing away the debris and fully opened it, revealing half a dozen arsenal weapons.

Now, If it were any regular old day, the girls would've squealed in shock, but as you can see, it's not a normal day.

So there were no normal reactions.

Without thinking, Jazmine quickly picked up the two matching 9MM handguns and prepared to place them in her back pocket, but Huey grabbed her wrist.

"Aye, now." He started, retracting the dangerous weapons out of her hands and placing them back in the case. "Slow down. We may not be diplomatic, but we still can't walk around actin' like a damn fool whippin' weapons around in the air." He informed her as the three of them just looked at him uncaringly.

Jazmine sighed annoyingly and rolled her eyes. "Huey, this girl just crossed the line! She just tried to kill you! _Kill you_!" She emphasized, getting loud as all hell. "So if you could please just hand over the guns-"

"No. Not yet."

"Huey!"

"No, Jazmine! Damn!" He suddenly yelled, his patience nearly gone. "We still gotta think! The four of us," he said, pointing his finger to all of them, "Are not gonna win against that girl! I'm pretty sure she's not dumb enough to do this on her own, and since Riley and Marcus said the person they saw was a big ass super nigga lookin' dude then we _know_ she's not alone." Huey went on as Jazmine still stared at him, but seemed to calm down a bit. "Now calm it down. We got all night to use those."

"Hell yeah," Riley interjected. "But right now, we gon' need to hit up everybody else. Then we gon' have to go to Ed and Rummy's." Everyone nodded in agreement, but then Jazmine's eyes widened. She knew she forgot something important.

"Oh my God!" She exclaimed. "We gotta make sure Caesar's okay!" She yelled again and everyone widened their eyes in realization and made a quick dash out the room (Riley made sure to bring the case with him) and down the stairway, almost tripping once again.

As they reached the bottom, Huey quickly ordered everyone to wait outside and they all obliged. He sprinted to the kitchen area to retrieve his keys from the table and as he passed the bathroom, he heard a low hissing sound.

Oh hell naw. This was _not_ happening.

Not even trying to witness the mass destruction that was to come, he hurried over to his keys and ran out the door, locking it surprisingly fast.

He unlocked the car door, nearly pushed everyone inside, as if they were moving too slow, and hopped into the driver's side.

Man, if Briana thought she'd get away with her little stunts, she had another thing coming.

Shit was about get real.

* * *

Mm, mm, mmm! *shakes head*

What Briana's doin' is just...it's unacceptable! *sighs like that dramatic white dude who looked at Riley's graffiti and thought it was 'beautiful, yet gangsta'*

Can't wait to hear from you guys! Please review! :)


	15. Hell Hath No Fury Pt I

FINALLY!

I know guys, I know what you're thinking, but seriously, I've been trying to post chapter 16 for three days now, but the thing said something about "you can only have 15 docs at a time" blah, blah, blah...then I finally understood what it meant lol so yeah, I'm good. But anyways,

Shoutouts to Miss Ace Thank You, MissG2020, YoungKong313, Shellie B, jayjai107 & the new onnee Zolow95! You guys are cool! Ain't got nothin' but love for ya!

Again, my apologies for the lateness. It shall never happen again (pronounced uh-gayne lol).

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING OR ANYONE BUT STACIA, BRIANA, KAYLA, AND THE OTHER OCs! NOW QUIT...BOTHERING...ME!

:)

Oh yeah and uh, don't get your hopes up lol this chapter leads to the action, once again. I love the suspense lol but next chapter is the real deal and I'm dead serious *points to chin*. so uhh, be on the lookout for that!

* * *

CHAPTER 15: HELL HATH NO FURY…PT.I

_Just need to put this…here. And that over there…and that's it._

Michael Caesar looked around the room in satisfaction with his hands on his hips in a non-girly way. He had just gotten finished straightening up Cindy's house on the bottom floor. It almost looked as if it were back to normal, with the exception of the new bleach stains on the McPhearsons' deep brown carpet that was once covered with some black substance that most likely wasn't supposed to be there. He figured Cindy's parents would be furious, but at least he did his best to make sure the place was clean. Shoot, they could at least appreciate him doing _that_.

Caesar just shrugged and pulled his iPod, along with his earphones, out of his jacket pocket and proceeded to listen to some tunes.

As for Cindy, she went back upstairs to check on Kayla, and sure enough, the little girl was in a peaceful slumber. No interruptions, nothing. Cindy smiled as she looked down at her little cousin. She looked like an angel. She noticed that the girl's hair was still in the braids, and she knew that if she continued to sleep like that, her head would be sore in the morning. And trust, Cindy knew that pain. Tender headedness ran in the family.

Cautiously, Cindy sat on the stool across from the bed. She scooted a little closer so that she was within reach of her cousin's head. Daintily, she took one of her cousin's braided ponytails in her hands. She was careful not to wake the girl as she removed the scrunchies from the beginning and the end of the long braid. After doing so, she gently unbraided Kayla's hair and repeated the action on the other side of her head. When it was all over, sweetly massaged the girl's head tenderly and kissed her forehead before scooting the stool back and standing up.

Trotting down the stairs, she heard Caesar moving around in the living room and decided to see what he was doing. When she walked in, she saw her best friend sitting on the couch totally submerged into his music. His eyes were closed and his lips were moving with no sound emitting from them. He slightly bopped his head left to right, his dreads moving a bit. Cindy smiled as she saw how completely relaxed he was. She was glad he was returning to his old self. Ever since she woke up from her 'slumber', he's been acting strange around her. On their ride to the party at the Freeman's, he barely looked her way, and when he did, he gave her this awkward smile that she just couldn't read. They talked a bit, but not like they did before the accident. And you know what? Quite frankly, Cindy was tired of it.

She was so tired of people walking around her being extra cautious, even if it _had_ just been for one day. Some kids at the party were being nicer to her than usual and the phony girls tried to show sympathy towards her but she would just put up a fake smile and tell them she's fine.

Funny. Usually when people say that, they actually _aren't_ fine. No, they're anything _but_. But as for Cindy, she really was fine. Slightly paranoid of course, I mean who wouldn't be? She never had to worry about niggas randomly walking up on her when they felt like it before. This was something new to her. And hopefully, something like that wouldn't happen again.

She didn't like being alone. Never did, but before the accident, she could tolerate it. She was used to it. Her parents, though they loved her dearly and she never doubted that for a second, seemed as if they didn't have time for her. They were always busy, whether it was work, or some co-worker or boss's party or _something_ that would interfere with their family time. Shoot, her parents were too busy to even be around _each other_.

Lauren McPhearson was a big time lawyer in Woodcrest, Maryland, but she never had a title for herself. It was always 'Mrs. Charles McPhearson' or 'Mr. McPhearson's wife'; never a simple 'Lauren McPhearson'.

But really, her husband had to be one of the biggest names in all of the east coast of America. Charles McPhearson was an entrepreneur. He had way more money than Tupac had albums after his death. This dude could give twenty million dollars away to one hundred different charities, and he'd _still_ have more money than Oprah!

It wasn't always like that though.

Way before Cindy was born, in 1973, Charles McPhearson had dreams. He dreamt that one day, he'd possibly become the richest, most successful man to ever live. He wanted to live his life way past 'well off'; he wanted to provide for his future wife, his future kids and his family for generations and generations to come, even after he was dead and gone. He didn't want to worry about much. He didn't want to struggle. He didn't want the stress. He just wanted to live his life the way he wanted to and the way his family, present and future, wanted to live.

Being a 12 year old young boy who lived his life in a three room apartment with his unemployed parents and a baby sister on the way, all he_ could_ do was dream.

He lived on the far side of town. The other side of the rich people with the spoiled kids and the late night pool parties. The dirty side. The raggedy side. The side of the forgotten.

The poor side.

His mother had been out of work since…well, he couldn't remember. It was actually quite normal in those days for the mother to stay at home and tend to her children and the house, so that didn't seem out of the ordinary.

What did though, was when his father announced to the entire family, that one day, when everyone was in a happy mood, that his boss let him go.

Let him go? Hold on.

"_What does that mean, dad?"_ he had asked his father, chomping down on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich his mother fixed up for him. His father looked down at his son, his eyes full of sadness, and gave him a wary smile.

"_Son," _he started, his smile faltering as he pat the top of his son's hair. Great. Now he felt even worse. "_…They don't need me at the factory anymore_." He told him, regretting every bit of it. A few people in the room gasped, Charles included.

"_But, but dad! How can they do this_?" He asked in disbelief. This had to be a lie. This could not be _happening_! They were already poor enough as it was, and now, instead of one, he had two jobless parents! _Two_!

His dad remained silent and after looking at each other for quite some time, he leant down to kiss his son on the forehead.

"_Don't worry, Charlie. We're going to turn out just fine._" He reassured his son with a sad smile.

From that day on, Charles made a promise to himself and God that he'd do whatever it took to help his family out. The day after his father broke the news, he went to Mr. Hardison's shop around the corner and asked if he could be the paper boy, and surely enough, he got the job. Every other day, he'd throw daily newspapers from doorstep to doorstep and every time he got his cut, he put the money in his piggy bank under his way-too-small-for-a-growing-child bed. Seriously, he needed to get his family _out_ of there.

For five years, he'd been working for Mr. Hardison. Even after his father was hired into some type of manufacturing business that he really didn't know about, he still wanted to work to keep his family living decently. However, decency wasn't enough. He wanted to go past all of that.

One day, he had a talk with Mr. Hardison; a long talk. He was old enough to know by then that the money he was bringing into the house just wasn't enough for his family if his father was to be laid off again. Knowing corporate America, it'd probably happen at the most inappropriate of times.

He politely asked the old coot for a raise, but being…Mr. Hardison, he refused to do so.

Time and time again, he'd ask the old man, but after about the tenth time, he threatened to fire the boy completely. Back then, a 17 year old wouldn't even be allowed to work in a fast food restaurant. Not in Woodcrest, Maryland anyways. So Charles, had no choice…

But to leave that shit hole. As harsh as that sounded, he had to. Mr. Hardison never really treated him the best anyways. Besides, Charles was too old to continue to make $4.25 an hour, and he worked five hour days. Not anymore.

After the last encounter with his ex-boss, he took the long route home. He had no means of transportation whatsoever, but he didn't care.

He went the one direction he thought he'd never see in person. The rich side. The side where the people got what they wanted. Where the people lived carefree. Where the people cared _less_. He wanted to be one of those people. He wanted to live a life with no worries and no frustrating bosses. Most importantly, he wanted to live.

And that's when it hit him. He paused on the pavement and surveyed his surroundings. Did he really think these people had money trees in their backyards? Did he not consider the fact that these people actually worked hard to get to where they were?

All those big houses, all those pools, all those party people outside, completely ignoring his presence; this wasn't just by chance. These people had to go through some stuff to achieve this much success. Some families may've been wealthy and had money passed down to them from generations before, but when it all comes down to it, someone, _somewhere_ had to start off fresh. With no experience, with no money and no satisfaction.

That day, Charles Lancaster McPhearson knew that he had to do something authentic.

Later that day, he came up with a plan. Since his IQ was pretty damn high, he excelled in math and science. If he wanted to be rich, to provide for his family and himself, he needed to use his smarts and expose it to the world.

Over and over again, for days and days in his overly crowded room, he tried to come up with a concoction of some sort. Shoot, he wanted to be the next Coca Cola dude, or something. Sadly, he gave up in that department and realized something like that just wasn't going to happen. Then, something amazing happened.

After picking up one of the test tubes, he started to walk towards the sink to pour it out, but he tripped over his baby sister's baby doll. He stumbled, but he never fell. Couldn't say the same for his test tube though.

He watched in horror, almost in slow motion, as he witnessed the thin fragile object moving closer and closer to the ground until it finally came in contact with it and broke into a million tiny pieces.

Charles continued to stare and after a few seconds, he groaned and rolled his eyes. NOW how was he going to pick that up? They didn't have a vacuum cleaner! And the broom was broken in half, about his five year old sister, Lisa's height. He was not about to bend over, nearly breaking his back to clean that up. He just thought he'd warn the family of the spill.

Wait, what was that?

As the young man started to pick up the big pieces of glass, his eyes transfixed on his sister's baby doll's shirt. It went from hot pink to…white?

_What the hell?_

He examined the strange color alteration, completely forgetting about the glass and the possibility of his sister crying her eyes out once she saw her doll. After a few moments, a light bulb went off in his head. He looked down at his white button up shirt, stains everywhere. He grimaced a bit, as he realized he didn't really have that many white clothes, and he had good reason. He already lived in a slum village; he didn't want to necessarily _look_ like it. Good thing he didn't get out of the house that day.

Hastily, for no good reason, he unbuttoned his shirt and threw it on the bathroom counter. He reached to his left to cover up the filthy ground, for now, and headed to his room to get another one of the test tubes. Carefully, slowly, he poured the liquid over one particular area of his shirt; the neckline. Now, even poor people like him knew that no matter how 'clean' people were, there was always a time for everyone to sweat whether it was on their neck, under their arms on their foreheads, wherever. His worst area had to be on his neck though. And his short hair definitely did nothing to cover it up.

In amazement, he observed the once brown stains on his shirt switch to pure whiteness. No sign or trace of dirt in sight.

And that, my friends, is how Charles Lancaster McPhearson became the inventor of…

Hold up, bleach was already created!

Charles grew frustrated as he just remembered that this substance was already discovered, but right before his frustration continued, another idea popped into his head.

When people are going out, and they wear all white, they barely have any fun because they try to keep themselves clean. When their clothes are filthy, their day is ruined.

But not anymore.

And that day, Charles Lancaster McPhearson came up with the bleach pen. People from all over the poor side of town heard of this, literally praising the intelligent young genius and it took a while for the news to reach the rich side, but it did eventually. Once it did, Mr. McPhearson's worry-filled life was over.

Needless to say, he grew up to become a very successful, very intelligent and rich man. He met, then, Lauren Waters at Princeton and a few years later, they eloped and had their first and only child, Cynthia Adele McPhearson. Charles met with Ed Wuncler five years after Cindy was born, but he didn't do business with him until two years ago. He didn't necessarily trust Mr. Wuncler, but because of his borderline obsession with keeping his family wealthy, he worked with him anyways.

Cindy loved that her father, as much of a nerd as he was, was highly intelligent and she loved how deeply he cared for his family's well-being, but really? They were already rich. She didn't like that he worked with Mr. Wuncler since he was an actual gangster. Shoot, this dude was the Don of…_all over_ America. He definitely couldn't be trusted.

Anyways, that's the history of Mr. McPhearson and how his family came to be. Now, back to Cindy and Caesar.

Cindy finally took her seat next to her best friend, tucking her legs underneath her Indian style. Caesar opened his eyes to see her sitting next to him and smiled as he paused the song and took the ear plugs out of his ears.

"So you finally came down, huh?" he joked as Cindy playfully rolled her eyes and smiled back. She then turned her head to the kitchen and saw that the microwave read '2:34'. She slightly frowned as she thought that maybe Caesar would leave her alone for the night. I mean, he did promise the others he'd return, but it was late and he still hadn't left. She didn't know. She was confused, so she didn't want to dwell on it too much.

"Ceez, you know it's late right?" She asked him, although she knew he knew that. He wasn't born yesterday.

Caesar smiled and placed the iPod on the unnecessarily elegant coffee table in front of them. "I know." He responded, looking dead at her, still smiling at her.

Alright, so maybe he hadn't planned on leaving.

"I planned on leaving," he began, tearing his eyes away from her and looking past her at the microwave. Cindy frowned at that, but he continued. "But, I don't think you want me to leave."

His bold statement caused Cindy to damn near choke on her breath. Just _what_ did he mean by that?

"W-what?" She stuttered inquisitively. Caesar glanced down at her and put on a small, sly smirk.

"I mean, with everything that's been goin' on, it just wouldn't be safe." He covered up his remark, before turning away from her towards the unlit fireplace. Had he been looking at her, she would've noticed the red streaks forming on his cheeks, and as dark as he was, it was slightly visible. Cindy let out an awkward giggle and yawned halfway through it. Caesar snorted and turned her way.

"Someone's tired."

"Shut up." She retorted, but smiled nonetheless. "So, any idea how my place got fucked up the way it did?" she vulgarly asked, leaning back in a comfortable position as Caesar smirked.

"Nope, but I think you already know. That's why I can't leave you alone. Too risky." He responded matter-of-factly and began to rise. Cindy was about to ask him where he was going, but she didn't want to show him how paranoid she was about being left alone. Besides, he just walked to the hallway closet to pull out a big, brown, comfy-looking comforter. She lifted her head a little to see what he was doing.

"That's a big ass cover for one person." She noticed, assuming he pulled it out to cover _herself_. Caesar looked her way and raised an eyebrow.

Hey, being around Huey for so long could do that to you.

"Cindy, I'm pullin' this out for the both of us." He informed her, striding closer to her with the cover over his right shoulder. He dropped it on the cushion next to Cindy and carefully rolled the coffee table to the side. It was then that Cindy noticed how strong her best friend was. Since the heater in the house was so _immaculate_, the two of them had long since taken off their jackets, leaving Cindy in a white t-shirt and Caesar in a black wife beater. They've been best friends for eight years, so to see the boy pushing the heavy table with his arm muscles flexing was very uncomfortable for Cindy, especially since she couldn't deny the fact that he looked so undeniably sexy doing so. Her eyes went wide and her cheeks flared as Caesar, not realizing what he was doing to her, continued to push the God forsaken thing.

Like, really? He's seen much better looking coffee tables than that thing and they weren't even as heavy. His hands and his shoulders were tired as hell from doing all of that bullshit work he just did.

But, he sighed and thought nothing of it. That's when he took notice of the silence around him. He didn't look to see why it was so quiet, but he assumed Cindy was asleep, so he shrugged and went to another corner of the room to push the ottoman in front of the couch. As he pushed the not-so-heavy object over to the couch, he saw that Cindy was awake after all. She was actually staring at him, looking…well, he didn't know.

But was she alright?

"Uh, Cin," He began, a bit uneasily as he saw…_something_ in her eyes that was quite unreadable. "You good?"

Cindy snapped out of her thoughts (not the dirty ones, more like the 'why am I thinking about him like that?' thoughts). "Huh?"

Caesar drew his eyebrows together at her strange, abrupt answer. "Are you okay?"

Cindy just shrugged. "Yeah, I'm good. Just…tired." She half-lied. The girl was tired, but…well, ya'll know the rest.

Caesar gave in and nodded in agreement. The night was a long one and all he wanted to do was sleep. He'd explain why he didn't show up to the Freeman's house tomorrow morning. He walked over to the space next to Cindy and sat down as the both of them placed their legs on the ottoman and covered up to go to sleep.

_30 minutes later…_

Late in the night at about 3:05, the back door of to the McPhearson's home creaked open with a certain petite uninvited someone creeping through it, which was no one other than Briana Taylor. Funny, you'd think that someone with a house as enormous as the McPhearson's would think about hiring security to blockade the whole area, but because of their lack of said security, this plan was easier than expected.

As the biracial culprit walked through one of the dark rooms carefully, which didn't take her long to figure out it was the living room, she started to head for the stairs, but instead, she heard a steady snore. She turned around quickly and noticed a certain blonde and a certain dread head knocked out on the couch.

The crazy girl couldn't help but think,

_Damn, they together now?_

She stared at the two for a few seconds before shaking her head, but then, something dawned on her. The bomb at the Freeman's was about to explode at any minute now.

As much as she didn't like the fact that she was risking Huey's life, she didn't want to take any chances. She didn't want to hurt him, but if the crew already had a lead on her, she would do anything to try to make them think it wasn't her. Yeah, that plan would work.

Or so she thought.

She snickered lightly as she contemplated on whether or not she should warn someone in the crew that something bad was about to happen. She sort of liked to play with them. It was fun to have them running around trying to solve the pieces to her 'so-called' mysterious text messages.

Briana flinched as she heard Cindy groan a bit in her sleep, but shrugged it off. She eventually decided to text them a vague message. Yeah, that'd be hilarious to see their reactions to that. And she was going to text the one person they'd least expect: Stacia.

She knew they always kept Stacia from knowing everything. She didn't know why they did that, but she knew they did it. But, what the psycho crazy potential-almost-actual killer didn't know was that the crew actually told Stacia this time, so she was going to be in for a world of surprise.

But as of now, she didn't know all of that.

She fished in her back pockets for her cell and noticed it wasn't there. Hmm, maybe it fell out or something? She didn't want to think about that, so she checked her front pockets as well as her jacket pockets and got the same result: nothing.

"Damn." She muttered, careful not to wake a soul. She needed a cell phone. She needed to play this horrid game. She needed to do anything to mess with the Freeman clan's brains.

She pondered for a minute and then looked back at the two friends sleeping, their heads now touching each other's. Briana rolled her eyes, and walked in front of Caesar quietly. She would've done harm to Cindy, but the girl nearly died the other day. She was going to give her a break, for now.

She also didn't want to necessarily hurt Caesar either, since he was just a nobody to her, so all she did was slowly pull up the covers on his side and pull his cell phone out of his pocket (as if it wasn't already hanging out of it).

Success!

A wicked smile came across her face as she began punching the buttons on the phone, and an evil cackle would've escaped her mouth too, if only Caesar hadn't slightly opened his eyes in confusion.

Could he see her? Did he notice who she was. Was her cover about to be completely ruined?

Briana inwardly panicked as she stared at him with gigantic eyes and remained frozen on the spot.

His eyes were so droopy looking that it was a wonder he continued to stare at the girl for so long. He finally tilted his head, as if it were a delayed effect, and spoke up.

"You got any grape soda?" he asked tiredly, before shutting his eyes completely, his head lazily falling backwards onto the back of the couch.

Briana blinked before finally letting out that breath of air she didn't realize she'd held in.

That was close.

Hurriedly, she dropped Caesar's phone and discreetly ran out of the house through the back door.

She had to get the hell up out of there. She'd already done too much, she wasn't about to overstep her boundaries even more than she already had.

She ran out of the place so quickly, that she didn't even realize that a certain little someone, about 3 foot 2, with fear stricken in her features, was watching her from the bottom of the stairs.

The_ entire_ time.

* * *

"Goddamn, Nigga! Can't you drive any faster?" Riley yelled as Huey continued to speed through the somewhat abandoned streets of Woodcrest. Well, it was abandoned at night. Curfew was at 12:00.

"Riley, shut the hell up! I'm not slowin' down!" he yelled back as he continued to accelerate.

_45…50…55...60…_

"Huey! Please slow down! I don't wanna die!" Jazmine slightly whined as the old Jazmine started to come back. Not quite though.

"Jazmine, no!" He continued to yell through everyone's shrieks and complaints. "I'm not stopping this damn car! I'm trying to save my friends!"

"I see that! We are too! But how are we gonna do that if we aren't trying to save _ourselves_!" She argued back.

Huey just ignored her as both she and Riley continued to yell at him while Stacia just kept shrieking at every bump, jerk and turn.

_65…66…67…68…_

"Oh my GOD! YOU'RE GOING _FASTER_? STOP THE CAR! JUST STOP THE CAR!"

"NIGGA, WHAT THE FUCK YOU THINK YOU DOIN'? YO ASS TRYNA KILL US! I OUGHT TO POP THE TRUNK ON YO ASS RIGHT NOW!"

"AHH!"

"AND YO ASS GOT MY GIRL BACK HERE SCREECHIN' AND SHIT? AWW, HELL NAW! NIGGA, YOU GON' DIE TONIGHT!"

"OH GOD! WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE…"

"…AND I WISH YO BITCH ASS WOULD DO SOMETHIN' BOUT IT…"

"…GOD HELP US! MY BOYFRIEND'S LOST HIS MIND!"

"AHH!"

"…AND YO ASS STILL GOT HER SCREECHIN'?"

"EVERYBODY, SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Huey finally yelled through all the chaos, shutting them up automatically, as he slowed down, miraculously parking on the side of the road in front of his best friend's house. He closed his eyes, his irritation on an entirely different level. "You didn't die! We're here! Now, get the fuck out of my car!" He yelled angrily as no one even hesitated to get out of the car. He sighed heavily and got out of the vehicle himself.

Examining the McPhearson's driveway, he noticed that Stacia's car was still there. Good. But where were Cindy's parents' cars?

Oh well. He just shrugged. They were probably doing…whatever it was those rich people did.

With everyone already at the door, determined to get away from the angry black man who was once behind the wheel, they all knocked on the door in a very irritating way. Huey just rolled his eyes and walked up behind them.

It took a while, but the door finally swung open revealing a very uneasy looking five year old girl in light pink pajamas. Her top had a red and pink heart in the middle of it with the words 'I Heart You' while her bottoms had multiple red and pink hearts. She had on some really adorable pink bunny slippers.

"Hey Kay." Jazmine sweetly greeted her with a smile, but her smile disappeared as she noticed Kayla trembling.

"Hi." She meekly greeted before letting them in and turning around with her head hung low. She slowly trudged into the living room, checking around her to see if anyone else who wasn't supposed to be there was there.

The crew didn't move from their spots as they saw Kayla's solemn behavior. Okay, something was wrong.

Stacia looked at Riley who just shrugged while Jazmine drew her eyebrows together as Huey arched his. They stood in silence for a minute before Kayla returned with a Styrofoam cup of milk.

Gross.

"You guys coming?" she asked in that cute child-like innocence. Everyone eventually walked in, but they weren't done with the girl.

They closed the door behind them and the four of them stood in front of her.

"Okay Kayla," Stacia said, "Sweetie, what's going on?"

"Yeah. You were so chipper earlier. What's wrong?" Jazmine added as Riley gave her a look.

"Chipper?" he asked, but she just rolled her eyes.

The girl stood in front of them with her bottom lip poked out and realized that they were not going to leave her alone about it. She also realized that she couldn't contain her emotions any longer.

In a matter of seconds, Kayla dropped the contents of the milk all over the floor, earning a 'man' comment from Riley as it splattered on his Jordans. Everyone else just looked at her with caution and concern.

"Kayla," Jazmine began in a soft voice, but was interrupted by the girl's sudden cry. Thank God it wasn't a loud one.

"What the-"

"Aww, Kay, come here." Jazmine sweetly offered, bending down to Kayla's height with her arms outstretched, ignoring Riley's outburst. The girl wasted no time falling into her cousin's friend's arms. Everyone else just looked at the girl in bewilderment. What was with her?

"Please don't leave." Kayla pleaded in a muffled voice, seeing as her head was sunken into Jazmine's shoulder. Jazmine patted her on the back.

"Shh…it's okay…it's okay…we're not going anywhere." She promised her, trying to calm the girl down. Stacia knelt down behind Jazmine and tapped Kayla's shoulder, making her lift her head up.

"Kayla, what's going on? And where's your cousin and Caesar?" She questioned in a gentle voice. Kayla still cried, but silently did so and sniffled before her reply.

"They're sleeping in the living room." She announced as everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"But what's the matter, Kay? Why are you crying?" Jazmine asked finally pulling back to look at the fragile little thing in her arms.

Kayla bottom lip was poked out, but her tears finally stopped flooding her cheeks. "Someone was in here and I'm scared."

"Hold up." Huey said, putting a hand up and looking at Riley as Riley looked back at him with the same expression. "Someone…was here?"

Kayla nodded.

Stacia and Jazmine looked at each other and back at Kayla.

"Other than Caesar and Cindy?" Riley added.

She nodded again.

The crew groaned and shook their heads. Jazmine finally rose up, as did Stacia.

"Kayla, sweetie, can you tell us exactly what happened?" Stacia asked patiently. Kayla was hesitant, but she did so anyways.

"O-okay," she began, "Well…I was upstairs sleep, but I was thirsty, so I wanted to go in the kitchen to get some milk," Everyone nodded. "…and when I was at the bottom of the stairs, I heard someone moving around." She paused, but Stacia insisted that she continue. "A-a-and I saw a ninja…I think it was a ninja…in the living room and I-I didn't know if they were supposed to be here. So I was going to ask if they were, but she looked like she was sneaking around and I knew she wasn't supposed to be here." She ended, her voice growing thick again as her deep blue ocean-like orbs began to fill up with tears.

"What happened next?" Riley asked in a surprisingly caring tone. No one was really shocked about that though, they just awaited the timid girl's answer.

"Nothing. She left after she heard Caesar sleep-talking."

Riley raised a brow. "You mean, sleep-walking?"

"No, Riley." Huey rolled his eyes. "She means he was talking in his sleep."

Kayla nodded in agreement. Jazmine looked down at Kayla and told her to go upstairs.

"B-but, I'm scared." She whined. Stacia offered to go with her, so the girl reluctantly accepted it and the two ascended upstairs. Now all that was left was Jazmine, Huey and Riley.

"Shit's gettin' outta hand." Riley lowly exclaimed in frustration.

"Right? I can't wait until we finally meet face to face with that…that…ugh!" Jazmine was a tad louder than Riley. Huey just shook his head.

"Well, we ain't gettin' anything done just standing here. Let's wake 'em up. We got work to do." Huey demanded as the other two gladly followed. Oh, the night wasn't over yet.

Hold tight, my friends, because next chapter, oh yeah, that's where things begin to get hectic. Believe that neither one of the crew members are bullshitting. Oh, you just wait.

* * *

So, ya'll can't wait for the action huh? lol well you're just gonna have to! Not long though, I promise!

But yeah, i mean, ya GOTTA review! :)


	16. Hell Hath No Fury Pt II

What up homies!

I've been busy you guys! So stop yelling at me! Gosh! School's out, soooo no more BS work! I just need to take my exams Tuesday & Wednesday and Graduate on Friday and I'm dooonnnnneeee! Woohoo! Yeeaaahhh, baabyyyy! Yeah!

Then I'll be able to update as quickly as I used to!

And my sister just had her baby, (my nephew! *sigh* feels so good to say that lol) Monday morning and they went home on Wednesday, so we've been over there helping her out and, of course, watching the baby! His name's Landon and he's the cutest thing in the world. And I'm an Aunt! Yay, yay, yaaay! lol but enough about me.

Shoutouts, of course to my favorite people! Miss Ace Thank You, Youngkong313, MissG2020, jayjai107, ShellieB, and Cruella De 'Chelle! Love you guys!

DISCLAIMER: SIGH...SERIOUSLY, DO WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS AGAIN?

Chapter's long, so be prepared to do some reading and some...things are gonna happen lol just read and enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER 16: HELL HATH NO FURY…PT II

"You've gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me!" Cindy yelled while the whole crew, but Stacia, walked to Huey's car. Stacia volunteered to take little Kayla to her house. It was 45 minutes away, but she didn't want the girl to be around either one of her friends' houses. It just wasn't safe.

Funny. Who'd ever think Woodcrest, Maryland would be considered 'dangerous'? It was the home of the rich, careless white people for goodness sake!

The crew insisted that she stay with Kayla, but she didn't want to hear it. She wanted in on this too. She wanted to go up against the one person who'd been bothering the people she loved and cared about. But she also knew that them waiting on her for two hours would just waste time they obviously didn't have. So she had to back out on it and agree to stay with Kayla for the night at her parents'. It was her only choice.

"Nope. We're dead serious." Jazmine replied to Cindy's outburst in a flat tone. She was tired, her ears were ringing from Cindy's yelling and she was pissed. How _dare_ this bitch come into her best friend's house unannounced, blow up a quarter of her boyfriend's room, choke Cindy (that's two violations on Cindy's part), touch her boyfriend's ass, lie to other people by telling them she went out with her boyfriend, talking back to Caesar, texting 'anonymous' messages to Huey, Caesar and Stacia, and scaring the living daylights out of a five year old! She must've been…no, it was CLEAR, she was out of her damn mind. And on top of that, because of everyone's lack of sleep, Jazmine was about to miss out on church today! This shit was not about to go down anymore.

Not up in _Jazmine's _house.

"Shit." Caesar cursed in total surprise. "And here I thought she liked you." He looked to Huey before the car doors were unlocked.

"Yeah, me too." Huey responded before everyone got into their seats. Cindy, Riley and Caesar sat in the back behind Huey and Jazmine. Cindy shook her head looking out the window. She was unable to say anything else, too fed up. Jazmine had a few words to say though.

"I can't wait, I can't wait." She continued to repeat with her eyes closed as Huey backed up a little and drove off, at a normal speed this time.

"Yo, where we goin'?" Riley asked, finally confirming his presence, ignoring Jazmine's chanting.

"Where do you think?" Huey replied and rolled his eyes as he heard his brother's sighing. "To pick up Marcus and Lamaar."

"Then?"

"Riley, you know where." Huey began to get irritated all over again. "Don't play dumb."

Riley scoffed. "Nigga, I was just checkin'! Shit, can't even do that no mo'." He muttered after his reply to his brother. It was obvious that everyone was crankier than usual, and not only because of the Briana thing. Lack of sleep could do that to you.

"So, you think we'll need all these people?" Caesar asked, not necessarily directing the question to a particular person.

"_I_ think so." Huey replied, coming to a red light. "We don't know what to expect." The light quickly turned green before he slowed down all the way and he sped up. "But the girl couldn't be dumb enough to just include herself and that other guy."

"Well, her dumbass sure doesn't know how to cover her tracks, now does she?" Jazmine butt in, halting her chants, gaining a gasp from her best friend and an open mouth from Caesar. Riley, despite his anger, snickered a bit. Huey just shook his head and tried to hide the smirk, but it wouldn't wipe itself off of his face.

"Daaaaaammmnnn…" Caesar drew out, finally finding his voice. "Jazzy, just used profanity?"

"Sho' did." Cindy answered his rhetorical question and smirked. Jazmine rolled her eyes.

"Really? We're on a mission to save ourselves and that's all you all could think about?" She said, turning around in her seat to face the people in the back.

Cindy shrugged apologetically. "Sorry, Jaz. It's just…weird hearin' you curse."

"Yeah." Caesar agreed. "You're the sweet one and it's just...kinda funny." He laughed a little but stopped as Jazmine cut her eyes at him. "Sorry."

"Aye," Huey began. His eyes were still on the road as everyone looked at him. "I wouldn't mess with her if I were you." He warned.

That statement alone shut everyone up. Everyone but Riley. He sucked his teeth.

"Man, nigga I ain't scurred of her ass. The fuck she gon' do?" He challenged as Huey's eyebrows went up as if saying 'I'm warning you'. He glanced to the side and noticed Jazmine's fists in balls and her eyes were narrowed.

"Riley, I'm serious. Don't do it." He warned his little brother again as he turned a corner. Lamaar's house wasn't too far.

Riley snorted. "Whateva, nigga. Knowin' Jazzy, all she gon' do is yell til' she cry and cry til she get sick. Only one she gon' hurt is her damn self. The fuck you warnin' me fo'?" Huey just shook his head as Caesar and Cindy looked at Riley with a worried look. They knew this entire Briana situation gave Jazmine a different persona, and if Riley continued, she would actually _do_ something.

_Shut up, Riley._

As they feared, Riley went on…and on…and on…until Jazmine couldn't take it anymore.

"…cryin' and shit. Callin' to Huey like his ass really gon' do somethin'. And I dare-" He would've went on, but he was cut off by Jazmine's quick movements as she turned around and grabbed him by the collar. Her nose was almost touching his.

Riley gulped.

"If you don't shut…up, I will pummel your face into the ground and sling your ass so far away, I swear to almighty God!" Jazmine's tone was so low and arctic that even Huey couldn't ignore the chills that ran down his spine. "Keep it up, Freeman. I dare you."

The three in the back stared at her with big eyes while Huey continued to shake his head.

"I-I-I'm good." Riley finally gained enough courage to respond. Jazmine fiercely let go of his now wrinkled polo and turned around to face forward. Okay, now it was official. She was in pure blind rage.

The rest of the car ride to Lamaar's was an uncomfortably silent one. As Huey pulled into the boy's driveway, Riley volunteered to get Lamaar, in order to avoid his nervousness around his brother's girl.

Shoot, he won't no punk, but he now understood not to mess with her.

Huey nodded at his suggestion and turned the car off. Riley took no time getting out of the car and power walked to the door.

It took a few minutes before anyone said anything, and it was Cindy who broke the silence.

"So, Jaz…" she began.

Jazmine seemed to have calmed down a little bit, and I do mean a _little_ bit.

"Yeah?"

"…You a real G now, huh?" Cindy questioned as she put on a smug smirk. Caesar than started to laugh a little as Huey snorted. Jazmine rolled her eyes, but she couldn't stop the smile that played upon her lips.

"Sorry about that, guys, it's just-"

"We understand, Jaz. No need to explain. Everything's just goin' wrong and Riley just added a little bit to the fire." Caesar finished for her and smiled warmly. Jazmine's eyes softened a little more as she smiled back, then she frowned.

"You guys, as angry as I am about this entire situation, and as confident as I am that we're going to get through this, we need some sort of prayer, y'know?" She suggested. She'd thought about that for quite some time, but once the explosion hit, it flew out of her mind and rage overtook it. Now that her rationality was returning, she felt it was necessary.

Cindy nodded but the boys didn't say, or do anything. She noticed this and shook her head.

"Oh, right. You all don't believe in that type of stuff." She remembered, but Caesar shook his head in disagreement.

"No, I do. It's just…I'm not the praying kind." Jazmine cocked her head to the side in confusion. "I just…I don't know. I didn't think everyone had to pray. I thought the pastor and adults did that kinda thing."

Cindy snickered, but Caesar was dead serious. "Ceez, you need to go to church more often if you think that."

"Cindy, please." Jazmine pleaded her friend to stop. She didn't think the situation was funny. "Ceez, anyone can pray. Christianity is pretty free-willed. It's not just directed to the pastor or adults." She warmly explained to Caesar as he looked at her with uncertainty. "And besides, you don't have to pray if you don't want to. Any one of us can volunteer, or you could just pray inside your head. Either way, God hears you."

Caesar didn't say a word. He just nodded and contemplated in his head of what he wanted to do. This was new. He didn't know he could do such a thing. He thought it was blasphemes in a way. He wanted to pray for so many things before in the past, but he didn't know if he could do it. Now that he knew he could, there were so many things in so little time that he could pray for. What room did he have for all of that?

As if Cindy read his mind, she placed her hand on top of his in a friendly gesture and smiled as he turned to her. He smiled back and at that moment, he knew exactly what he wanted to pray for.

Jazmine smirked at the display before turning to Huey. She was shocked to find him staring back at her with a glazed over look.

"What?"

"Huh?" He was caught off guard. Okay, so he was clearly in a daze of some sort. "Oh, nothing." As he blushed, Jazmine smirked again, knowingly. The two in the back didn't even pay attention.

"Huey," She started in a sly tone, still smirking. "Are you checking me out?" She teased. Huey blinked at her, not really wanting to answer that question. Jazmine giggled a little, that is until she felt a vibration in her pants pocket. She pulled her cell out of her pocket and looked to see who it was.

"Daddy." She read aloud before rolling her eyes. Huey smiled a bit as he sensed her irritation.

Jazmine loved her father, she really did, but he was so damn worrisome! She already told him that she'd be at Huey's house prior to the night that just passed, so why was he bothering her?

Well, guess it didn't hurt for him to check up on her.

Reluctantly, she clicked the green phone button and held the phone to her ear. Huey decided to turn around to the backseat to see why it'd gotten so quiet. He saw Caesar listening to his iPod and Cindy closing her eyes, trying to catch up on some more sleep before the 'big event'.

"Daddy, I'm fine." He turned back to Jazmine as he heard her trying to remain patient with Tom. "…Yeah…yes…Daddy let me…yes, but…Daddy! I'm fine. We're all fine." He saw her close her eyes and pinch the bridge of her nose. "Look, I'll explain everything to you when I get home, just trust me, okay?" She pleaded. "Okay…okay…love you too…alright, bye." And with that, the call ended.

"What was that all about?" Huey asked as he noticed Riley and Lamaar walking towards the car. They were obviously talking about what happened back at the house since Lamaar's face had a look of disbelief on it.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Well, apparently he saw the giant gaping hole in your room, so he called me panicking and what not. I just told him I'd explain everything to him later."

"Oh." It was all Huey could say before Riley and Lamaar opened the car door on Cindy's side.

Riley made a face as he noticed Cindy snoozing all on the backseat. For some reason, he wanted to be ignorant.

"Hell naw. Cindy, scoot yo' ass over!" He ordered in an unnecessarily loud voice. Jazmine and Huey rolled their eyes in annoyance. Caesar couldn't hear a damn thing; those ear plugs must've been on high. Cindy opened her eyes and glared at him.

"Nigga, I won't even all the way sleep! You ain't have to pierce my eardrums with yo' loud ass mouth!" She retorted angrily and lifted herself up to let the two in. As she scooted over to Caesar, she accidently bumped him too hard and one of his ear plugs fell out. "Ooh, my bad." She apologized immediately, but Caesar just smiled.

"It's cool." He assured and put the ear phone back in his ear before bopping his head to the music again.

Everyone greeted Lamaar kindly, and once they were settled in the car, Huey wasted no time starting it up and pulling out of the driveway.

"Okay, so I guess we're on our way to pick up the dumbass." Huey said aloud, to no one really, but everyone just giggled and snickered.

"Huey! Stop being so mean." Jazmine playfully scolded. Huey rolled his eyes.

"I'm not, I'm being honest."

"Anyways…" Riley interrupted them before they went on to some type of love fest. Shoot, he missed his girl not being there so he was not about to be exposed to any type of lovey-dovey crap. It'd only make being without Stacia much more difficult. "Let's roll, niggas. We got a job to do."

* * *

"Aye," Rummy called to his friend from across the living room. "What Riley say to you earlier?"

Ed was standing up with a Corona in one hand and an iPhone on the other. Rummy shook his head as he took note of this.

"And _what _did I tell you about that Nigga technology?"

Ed had a smirk on his face as he used one hand to text one of his 'bitches'.

"Man, I'ono what you trippin' fo'. Shit, bitches love textin'." After sending the 'bitch' a smiley face, he stuffed it in his back pocket. Rummy shook his head once again and decided to give up. It was pointless trying to get through to that guy. "But, that nigga told me some bitch at his school was after his crew an' shit. He basically said we need to get shit ready befo' some'n else pop off. Since he ain't call me back, I ain't worry 'bout that shit."

"…"

Rummy stared at the dummy for what seemed like hours before reaching down to pick up an empty beer can and throwing it at his head. His accuracy was on point, too.

"Ow! What the fuck!"

"Dumbass! Why ain't you tell me before? Niggas could be in trouble right now!" Rummy was furious. Ed had about one more time to continue with his act of stupidity.

Ed rolled his eyes and chugged down his drink.

"When the hell was you even gon' tell me?" Rummy argued as Ed belched loudly.

"Man, I was gon' tell you." He responded with a shrug.

"When? Before or after niggas was gonna get shot up?"

"Aye! I ain't gon' let that shit happen!" Ed began to get defensive and pointed a finger at himself.

"Nigga! When Riley an' his brotha was little, we fuckin' robbed a convenience store with them inside!"

"Yo! You knew 'bout that shit too, though, so don't put that shit on me, muthafucka!"

True.

"Aiight, that was a bad example, but Ed, you shoulda told me as soon as you got off the phone wit' him. We could be checkin' on his ass right now! Matter o' fact…" Rummy went into his pocket to fish out his non-nigga technology; a Samsung flip phone.

Ed snickered.

"Man, what is that shit?"

"A phone." Rummy answered before dialing the number to the well known 'little gangsta'.

* * *

_Bzzzzz, Bzzzzz_

_Bzzzzz, Bzzzzz_

_Damn, what the fuck?_

Riley mentally cursed as he awoke from his quick nap. It took him a minute to realize that his phone was vibrating in his pocket, indicating that he had a call. In no time, he took the cell out of his pocket, answered it.

"Hello?" He answered in a raspy-like voice. He looked around to see everyone was asleep and Huey was still driving.

Duh.

"_Riley?"_

Rummy?

"Yeah, what up?" He sat up a little bit to get in a more comfortable position. This was just ridiculous. Five of these niggas were in the backseat; himself, Cindy (technically, she's not a nigga), Caesar, Marcus and Lamaar. How the hell were they all able to fall asleep?

Anyways…

"_Aye, you good? Ed's dumbass just tol' me 'bout what's been goin' on with that lil' girl from your school. You need assistance? 'Cause I'll be more than happy to supply you with whateva you need. Nigga I want in on this too."_

Riley stared at the phone for a minute before snickering a bit. This was nothing new. They were always there when he needed them, right on time. Huey had stopped at a stop sign, so he turned around a little to see what was going on.

"What's goin' on?"

Riley just shook his head and held one finger up as if saying 'hold up, I'll tell you in a minute'. Huey shrugged and turned back around to drive again.

"Aye nigga, we cool. We actually around the corner from Ed's crib right now."

"_Word?"_

"Yeah. Ya'll there?"

" _You already know, nigga."_

"Aiight then, open the gate cause we 'bout to get it in."

"_Hell yeah! Hey, you got the silver case?"_

Riley smiled.

"What kinda nigga would I be if I didn't?"

Rummy laughed on the other end.

"_My nigga. Aiight, I'll be waitin'."_

"Aiight, nigga."

Riley clicked the end button and put the phone back in his pocket.

"That was Rummy." He informed his brother. "Nigga called just in time, too."

"Sure did." Huey agreed. There was a slight pause.

"We almost there?" Riley asked.

"See for yourself." Huey answered. Riley was about to say something smart but as he looked ahead, he saw the familiar tall black gates already open. He smiled wickedly. Shit was about to get _really_ real.

It took a few minutes to get to the Wuncler driveway because of how ridiculously enormous the estate was. Really? How the hell does someone get lost getting to someone's _driveway?_

As Huey finally slowed to a stop and put the car in park, he shut it off and turned to Jazmine. Riley was in the back roughly waking everyone else up.

"Aye, Nigga! Get yo' heavy ass off my shoulder! We here!" He yelled in Marcus' ear so loud that everyone else in the car jerked up out of their sleep.

"Ah!" Marcus shrieked in a boyish voice and covered his mouth as if saying 'did I just do that?'.

"Riley!" Huey yelled, preparing to hop in the back seat and whoop his ass. Riley just had to be ignorant. Huey wanted to be the one to wake Jazmine up, as petty as that sounds. Hey, he's tired. Mood swings are bound to happen.

"What nigga?"

Huey shook his head. "Nothin', just get out."

Caesar opened the door on his side while Lamaar opened his at the same time and all at once, Cindy and Caesar fell out on the left side while Marcus and Lamaar fell out on the right. Riley was in the middle so he wasn't affected at all; he just laughed at his friends' expense. Lamaar and Marcus flipped him the bird as they held their sides, along with Caesar and Cindy.

Huey and Jazmine rolled their eyes and lead the pack, or the herd, or…whatever! They were just ahead of their friends. Sheesh!

Once everyone walked into the Wuncler mansion and settled in the living room, they went to work.

Riley, Cindy, Caesar, Lamaar, Marcus, Ed, and Rummy were all seated while Huey and Jazmine stood next to each other leaning against the wall by the television.

"Look," Jazmine began. She had not time for bullshit. "We need someone who's good at working computers. Who can do that?" She looked around and spotted two hands up in the air; Caesar's and Lamaar's. "Okay, that's cool but we only need one. Who's willing to compute?"

"Jaz, what are we going to do on the computers?" Lamaar asked.

"Oh, you know…" is all she said before Lamaar raised his eyebrow expecting her to continue.

"…No, I don't."

"Hey! You're good with computers, you should know!" She began to get angry and everyone looked at her as if she were crazy.

"Okay, that's enough." Huey butt in. "Jazmine, sit down." He ordered.

"But-"

"Jazmine." He warned her. She looked away from him, still standing in her spot. He sighed. "Just do as I say-"

"Who the _hell _are you? My daddy?" Okay, now Huey was beginning to get really annoyed.

"Hell no! You're just doin' too damn much! Now sit down!" He raised his voice but she didn't budge. "Either that, or be quiet because all this hostility and shit is slowin' us down! You," he turned from his girlfriend and pointed to Lamaar. "Get on the computer and find out where Briana lives. You and you," he pointed to Riley and Ed. "Get the equipment."

"Yeaahh!" Both of them replied and hopped off the couch to find what they needed.

"Can I go with them?" Cindy asked.

"Whatever." She jumped up and happily followed Ed and Riley's trail. "Marcus you can go, too." Marcus smirked and ran off. Caesar snickered as he realized that Huey just didn't want to deal with the boy, but he didn't say a thing about it.

The only ones in the room now were Huey, Jazmine Caesar and Rummy.

"So, what about us?"

Huey looked to Caesar and shrugged. "You can go with Lamaar." He suggested, but Caesar shook his head.

"Naw, I'm cool. What we gon' do though?"

"Shit," Rummy began. "I say we just wait til' everybody get down here with the supplies an' shit and the location of that girl's house." Everyone shrugged, but Huey.

"Yeah, but we still need a plan. We're not just gonna run up in her house and thrash the place."

"Why not?" Jazmine spoke up. "She did Cindy's and she blew yours up!" Rummy's eyes widened at that.

"Whaat? Niggas blowin' up houses now?"

Jazmine nodded and Huey rolled his eyes. Jazmine really needed to be quiet right about now. "Yes, now can we focus?"

"We _are_ focusing, Huey. You just don't want my input." Jazmine pouted and Huey could've sworn that he saw a hint of sadness in her eyes. Damn, did she really think that?

God. Now he felt bad.

"…Jazmine," He started with an apologetic look. "…that's not true."

Jazmine snorted and rolled her eyes. "Right." Her voice cracked a little, making Huey feel even _worse_. Wonderful.

"I'm serious." He went on. "You're just in pure blind fury right now. You're not being rational. I don't want you to say or do anything you'll regret later, which is why I told you to sit down and don't talk." He didn't mean to make the end of his statement sound so harsh, but it kind of did. He inwardly cursed himself and added, "Well I mean, it's your choice to do whatever but I'm just sayin'..." He didn't really know what else to say as Jazmine stared at him. Caesar and Rummy eyed the situation silently awaiting Jazmine's reply. What was this, a soap opera?

Jazmine sighed and ran her fingers through her hair in embarrassment. She _was_ sort of acting like a fool. She knew Huey respected her opinions and suggestions, but tonight she was just off.

"…Yeah, I understand where you're coming from." She softly replied. "Sorry for my behavior you guys." She said to everyone in the room with her head down. Caesar and Rummy just waved their hands in the air.

"Jazmine, we understand. No harm done over here." Caesar replied. Rummy nodded and stood up to walk into the kitchen. He returned with a few drinks in his hand.

"Look, it's late. Niggas tired as a bitch. We all need somethin' to calm us down. What we need is a drink. Who down?" He looked to see no one raising their hands and a raised eyebrow from Huey. "Y'sure?" They nodded. "Aiight then. Shit, niggas missin' out." He went to sit next to Caesar as Jazmine finally sat down across from them.

Huey sighed and decided to sit next to Jazmine. He soon realized doing so was a big mistake. He was already tired and him sitting down just made him not want to get up to do anything. Whatever.

"So, we're just waiting on them?" Caesar asked. Huey nodded.

"Well…I'm bored. I guess I'm goin' with Lamaar after all."

"Pause." Huey joked causing Rummy to snicker. Jazmine just sat back with half-lidded eyes. If she didn't get up soon, she was definitely about to pass out on the couch.

"Nigga, that _was_ pretty gay." Caesar rolled his eyes and smirked before walking off. Okay, now it was Jazmine, Huey and Rummy and to be pretty honest, Rummy felt uncomfortable. He knew the two were a couple, thanks to Riley and his big mouth, so for him to be there, he felt like he was just in the way.

"Aye, I'ma be right back." He told them, not waiting for a reply and walked off somewhere. Huey looked Jazmine's way and saw her almost completely out of it. He smiled a little and kissed her cheek. Jazmine lazily turned in his direction and smiled back.

"What was that for?" Huey shrugged.

"You just looked like you needed it." Jazmine's smile grew a little and she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his chest. Huey welcomed the embrace and returned it. "Look," he continued. "Don't worry too much, okay? We'll be fine." Jazmine nodded, still in his arms.

"I know. I just…" She didn't know what else to say other than, "Why us?" she softly questioned, desperate for an answer.

Huey wanted to give an answer to that…but he really had no idea. Why is this crazy chick hung up on him and why is she trying to kill and/or hurt the people he loves. She's insane.

"I have no idea." He admitted and jumped a bit as he felt something wet on his shirt. Was she…crying? "Jaz?"

"Hmm?" she gave him a muffled reply as her face was, once again, buried in his chest.

Huey pulled her up gently and placed his hands on her shoulders. He took note of how red her eyes were and how wet her cheeks were.

Embarrassed, Jazmine quickly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked down at the couch beneath her. She couldn't believe she was crying, again. When would she ever stop being a baby? She tried to stop it, but her tear ducts were filling up again involuntarily.

"Jazmine, why are you crying?" He asked in a voice so warm and soothing that it nearly made Jazmine melt inside. Only he could make her feel like that.

"I…I don't know. I'm just, a little embarrassed." She admitted. Huey chocked in eyebrow, letting his hands fall off her shoulders.

"Why?"

Jazmine finally looked up at her boyfriend and saw a look of concern on his face. She smirked. He was so caring and people failed to see that. Despite his cold, stoic nature, he was actually really sweet. She wished he'd open up to people more, but that just wasn't him.

"…I've been acting like a jerk." She paused. Huey was about to tell her to elaborate, but she did before he said anything. "I snapped at everyone because I was so angry at the entire situation and I took it out on the wrong people. And even though Riley provoked me in the car, I can't help but feel bad for lashing out on him."

Huey snorted. "Hey, he deserved it." Jazmine waved her hand in the air in a 'whatever' gesture.

"Yeah, but that doesn't make me feel better. That's not me. I'm not mean or violent. And to be completely honest, I don't even think I'll be able to handle everything that's about to go down at Briana's." She went on as Huey just listened to her. "I feel like…such a loser right now!" She slammed her right fist down on the couch. Huey looked down and noticed the deep imprint she caused. Damn. "I don't even know if I can fight. The most I've done was _talk_! How am I supposed to go up against this girl? And it's possible she'll have some back up." She slapped her hands on her face and groaned. "God, what am I going to do?"

Huey blinked.

_She can't fight, my ass. _He thought. This girl just unwittingly proved herself wrong.

"Jazmine. Stop beating yourself. You have every right to be upset. Hell, we all are. You're not a loser and something tells me you're more capable of handling this situation than you think." He smirked and pointed to the imprint. She looked down and dropped her jaw. "See, you don't even realize how strong you are."

Still looking down, Jazmine blushed and shrugged. She didn't know what to say.

"You have _got_ to learn not to worry so much about what you _think_ you can't do and make it happen. Because, as corny as this sounds, I really believe in you, Jazmine." His statement made her smile, the blush never leaving. "And I believe you can do anything you set your mind to." Jazmine looked up to see Huey smiling at her a little. God, he was so cute! And his advice always came in handy. He was just…indescribably amazing.

Unexpectedly, she hugged him again and gently kissed his lips. Huey was taken aback, but within seconds, he wrapped his arms around her waist and returned it. The both of them released all of their emotions within that kiss; the anger, the sadness, the joy, whatever emotion they felt at the moment. Unknowingly, the two laid back on the deep red leather couch, Jazmine on top, and it didn't take long for them to get a little heated. Jazmine let out a small moan as Huey softly bit down on her bottom lip. Okay, just what was he _doing_ to her? As Jazmine did so, Huey took the opportunity to slide his tongue across her teeth for access and Jazmine immediately granted it.

Wow.

Jazmine couldn't believe they were kissing each other like that, and Huey was the one who initiated it! She didn't know where her impure thoughts were coming from but they sure as hell flooded her mind. She couldn't help but think of doing nothing but ripping his clothes off and taking him on that very couch. Since when did she start to think like that?

Oh, right. Now.

Damn. Huey couldn't think right then. All he could think about was how tightly pressed against his chest Jazmine was and how pissed off he'd feel if they were interrupted this time. Huey unknowingly ran his hands up her thighs and rested them on her hips. Jazmine let out another soft moan and her vibrations within the kiss made Huey sigh. This was too much. They needed a room, damnit! At any moment, someone would catch them, but neither one of them cared.

And surely enough,

"Well, well, well. What the fuck is goin' on here?" Riley teased standing in the hallway, expecting the couple to break apart, but they just continued, not hearing a thing he said. Riley frowned. Damn, he tried.

Caesar and Cindy walked behind him with Cindy saying something like 'I'll beat the bitch's ass'. Probably talking about Briana.

Riley smirked wickedly and turned around to face his friends. "Aye," Cindy stopped talking and the two looked at Riley. Riley pointed his finger towards the oblivious couple on the couch. Cindy and Caesar's eyes grew and their mouths were wide open. Riley snickered silently.

"Holy shit." Caesar softly said with a wide smile. "They look like they're 'bout to get it onnn!"

"Nigga who the fuck you tellin'?" Riley agreed. Cindy grinned.

"Yo…they some freaks." She said before she laughed silently. "You think we should break them apart?"

Riley smirked again and put his finger on his chin in thought.

"Aye, let's just walk in and act like we talkin' about somethin'. Then, them niggas gon' jump up all quick and shit. Shit gon' be hilarious." Riley suggested as the three of them snickered.

"Aiight, cool. What should we talk about though?" Cindy asked.

"How about…Briana?"

Cindy gave Caesar a deadpanned look. "Bringin' that bitch up again would make me forget about Jaz and Huey. Not happenin'." She defiantly disagreed. Caesar shrugged.

"Let's just talk about…food." He suggested again.

The others shrugged. As long as it wasn't about Briana, that was fine. The three of them began walking but paused once they heard Jazmine moan. Oh God.

"Damn, what is he doin' to her?" Riley questioned lowly. The others shrugged and smirked in amusement. "We _should _stop this shit before they go too far. Shit, niggas don't wanna see all _that_." Caesar snorted and Cindy continued to smile amusedly.

The three of them walked into the room talking about how good the food was at Cindy's party and just as they expected, the couple broke apart abruptly. Riley couldn't help it. He started cracking up and made it clear that he was laughing at his brother, seeing as he was pointing right in his direction.

So much for letting them know they didn't see anything.

The couple blushed and glared at Riley as he continued to laugh. "Niggas got caught, again!" Cindy and Caesar couldn't hold back anymore and joined in with Riley. Hey, it was pretty funny.

Huey rolled his eyes. "Man, fuck all ya'll." He bitterly retorted as the laughter continued. Jazmine just gave her friends a hard look.

"Aww, don't be like that Huey." Cindy said coming down from her laughter. "We all need some sometime-"

"Cindy!" Jazmine shrieked and her friends started their laughter back up just as everyone else walked into the room. Ed was the first to speak up.

"What's so funny?" Shoot, he wanted in on it.

"Nothing!" Jazmine blurted rather quickly and Cindy, Caesar and Riley started howling. Huey rolled his eyes again.

"Aiight! Damn!" he yelled.

Everyone else just looked at them confusedly.

"…Okayyy…" Lamaar let out. "…well, whenever ya'll done, follow me. I got the location."

That cut the laughter off and within seconds, everyone followed the boy.

* * *

This was torture. This was absolute torture.

Not that babysitting a little girl had anything to do with it. Nope. Kids weren't a problem. But if Stacia had to wait another hour without any type of indication that everyone was alright, she'd seriously flip. She didn't like to admit it, but she was scared. She didn't like being away from Riley this long. She didn't like having to worry about her friends' safety. She didn't like any of this. She just wanted things to be back to normal. She didn't know if Briana had one alias or one-hundred of them. Briana couldn't have been that prepared though. She was basically leading everyone towards her. What a dumbass.

Or maybe she expected this to happen. She probably had something grand planned and they all failed to realize it.

Stacia groaned as she laid down in Kayla's parents' guestroom. She didn't know what was going on honestly. All this bullshit was happening because of the girl's obsession with Huey.

Stacia laughed a bit at the irony. Huey always tried to stay away from crazy people and they were the ones following him.

She sighed and looked at her phone.

_No messages._

She sighed again and connected her phone to the charger in the wall. She didn't know what else to do. She wasn't there. They were probably too busy, so she wasn't about to call them and worry them to death. All she could do was pray.

And before she drifted off to sleep, she asked God to watch over her friends and protect them. Whether or not she knew it, they needed it.

* * *

_Got Campaign goin' strong  
Gettin' brain while I'm talkin' on the phone  
Spend money when ya money's long  
Real street niggas ain't no clone  
We at the top where we belong  
Drank lean, Rose', Patron  
Smokin' on 1000 dollars worth of strong  
When the club bout to hear this sooonngg_

_Got racks on racks on racks  
Racks on racks on racks  
Racks on racks on racks  
Got racks on racks on raaaaacks_

Wow. Who would've known a stuck up, evil, insane person like Briana would blast a song like _that_, especially at 4:15 in the morning? Does she sleep?

"BRIANA TAYLOR!" Her mother yelled from behind Briana's closed bedroom door. "TURN THAT RACKET OFF, NOW! IT'S TOO EARLY IN THE MORNING!"

Briana rolled her eyes. "Suck it, bitch." She muttered, not expecting her mother to hear her.

"WHAT!"

_Oops._

"Uhh, nothing mom." She replied and rapidly turned the music off on her computer.

"That's what I thought. Go to bed, now." She scolded. Briana sighed irritably but did as her mother said. No matter how crazy the girl was, she knew better than to piss her mother off. As the saying goes, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

Especially a black one.

And her mother was scorned. Her father was caught not too long ago with another woman, a very familiar looking woman. Briana and her mother were talking about something and as they walked in the room, they spotted the ordeal and…well, needless to say, things definitely went wrong. Her mother filed for divorce immediately and they're currently awaiting the court date.

As for Briana, the entire thing took a toll on her and that's when she actually broke out of her borderline insanity and went completely nuts. She was already mean and heartless, but what her father did completely shattered her and turned her into someone totally different.

Anyways, done with her sob story.

She looked on her dresser to see her phone lighting up. She walked over to it and answered it.

"Yeah?"

"_Hey…"_

Huh? This voice was unfamiliar. She thought this was her cousin.

"Uh, yeah? What do you want?" She impatiently replied.

"_You, bitch."_

Briana drew her eyebrows together in shock and anger. Was this unknown person supposed to scare her? And did he just call her a bitch? Hell naw.

"Uh…nigga, who the fuck you think you callin' a bitch?"

"_Uh…you, bitch." _The voice reiterated. Briana paused, then laughed in disbelief. _"Hey, look outside yo' window." _The voice continued.

She rolled her eyes and looked towards her window to find it…

Open. Well…now wait a minute…she never opened her window.

In realization, her eyes widened and suddenly she didn't feel so brave.

"_Aww, what's wrong? Scared?" _The voice taunted and let out a small evil laugh. _"Oh, baby I thought you were the shit! I thought you were fearless, considering your recent series of reckless activities."_

When she didn't reply, the voice continued.

"…_So what you waitin' for? Look outside the window."_

Briana didn't budge, but as she saw a shadow right outside her window, the phone slipped out of her hand and dropped on the hardwood floor. Good God! Someone was trying to get her!

Well, she believed in karma, and she knew something like this would happen, but she didn't want it to. God, she really didn't want it to. She just wanted her man! Was that too much to ask?

Cautiously, she picked the phone back up and held her ear to the receiver.

"…_And now that you're back, look outside the window." _The sarcastic voice ordered her once again.

"Wh-wh-what do you want from me?" she replied in a low voice, her body beginning to shake.

"_Wh-wh-what I want," _The voice mocked_, "is for you to look outside the fuckin' window! Bitch, don't make me come in there!"_

Involuntarily, Briana shrieked as the unknown person raised his voice.

"_Hurry up!"_

"Okay, okay!" She quickly answered. She didn't like it when people yelled at her so she just followed what the voice told her to do.

Hesitantly, Briana walked away from her desktop and passed her bed to peer out of the window. She waited…and waited, but she saw nothing, or no one out there. Okay, this was seriously creeping her out. And the voice on the line was no longer existent. Was she…hallucinating? Just as she was about to close her window, the owner of the voice popped in her face and Briana let out a loud scream.

That is until she realized who it was.

"YOU IDIOT!" She yelled and bopped her cousin in the head with her phone. He just laughed whole-heartedly. "I thought someone was out to kill me! I should whoop your ass!"

Her cousin continued to laugh and climbed into the window before closing it behind him.

"Oh, c'mon Briana, it was a joke."

"Hell naw! Nigga you had me shakin' in this bitch!" She admitted, her heart continuing to beat rapidly. "Scared the shit outta me."

"Aw, I'm sorry cuz." He unconvincingly apologized. Briana rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. How'd you disguise your voice like that anyways?" Despite her anger, she was interested.

Her cousin shrugged. "I can just do it."

"Hmm." Briana hummed.

"What?" He asked, not really looking forward to any of Briana's ideas. She smiled wickedly.

"Maybe," She began, rubbing her chin, "we should get a bit riskier and call them, using your mysterious voice." He rolled his eyes.

"Really?" he replied in a flat tone.

"Yes, really! What's up with you and asking stupid questions?" Briana rose her voice a bit.

He sighed. "Briana, why do you like approaching things childishly. Just get things done quicker by demanding what you want."

"And just how the hell am I gonna do that, Brian? Huh? Walk up to him and say, 'Your mine! Fuck that bitch' and drag him with me?"

Wow. So her cousin _does_ have a name. Huh.

_Why not? You're already crazy as hell now._ Brian thought. He'd never tell her that, though.

"Just do as I say and we'll get this thing done. Trust me."

And how many times has he heard _that_?

_Trust me. _

Since when was it a good idea to trust a psycho?

But as usual, Brian had to be the dumbass to follow what his younger cousin told him to do. He sighed.

"Whatever."

"Aiight then." Briana finalized and went to her computer to continue her song. She made sure it wasn't loud, for she didn't want her mother bursting into her room. Brian, on the other hand, was irritated and decided on going downstairs to the living room. But before he did that,

"Briana," he called to his cousin. She just swiveled around in her chair to face him. "…he's just a guy. Is this all really worth it?"

Briana drew her eyebrows together in annoyance. "What the hell are you blabbing about?" Brian shook his head and walked out without a response. She'd find out soon enough.

* * *

"Let's roll." Rummy ordered with everyone in tow. Everyone was strapped, even Jazmine. They all had the same weapons, 9mm and Desert Eagle handguns. The only difference was the colors. Riley's guns were silver whereas the rest of the men had black ones. Ed especially customized the girls' guns to the way they wanted it. Jazmine's were, of course, pink while Cindy's were money green, since her favorite color was green and her family had money out the ass.

Ed also equipped everyone with perfectly fitted beige trench coats. Riley insisted on wearing a suit resembling Tony Montana's, but he figured it was a little too late to be picky, so he just wore what everyone else wore.

Everyone hopped in Ed's spacious, black van and in no time, they were gone.

* * *

"_You know, when you takin' a dookie, and it's the dump that ain't the dookie you wanna take, but it's the dookie that the dookie wanna take. It's workin' _you_ ova."_

Brian was downstairs cracking up at the comedian on BET. He needed to do something to get his mind off of the guilt. He needed some sort of relief, no matter how temporary it was.

"…_Where's the baby wipes? Fa' God's sake, where's the damn baby wipes, when ya need 'em? And then ya ass just itchin' all…damn…day…"_

The comedian went on and on as Brian continued to laugh.

He never wanted to do any of this bullshit Briana put him up to do. It was Briana who wanted Huey. It was Briana, who didn't like Cindy. It was Briana who hated Jazmine. It was Briana, Briana, Briana! Not _Brian_.

Ever since the day he hurt Cindy, he wanted to just go back and apologize to her. He knew nobody would want to hear it, but he just…he didn't want to look like the monster. He loved his crazy cousin, but he was tired of everything. He was tired of looking like the bad guy when in actuality, it was his cousin's fault. He was still weak minded, but he had a mind nonetheless. He needed to get from under Briana's wing. He needed to stop his sinful ways and do what _he_ wanted to do. He needed to be a man!

And it took him a few minutes, but from that point on, Brian decided to be his own person. He was finished.

All he had to do was tell Briana. And boy, was he leaving her alone at the wrong time.

They were almost there and they couldn't wait. The ride had been a silent one. They all thought about what was to come of this and had to wonder if they were overly prepared, or perhaps, not prepared enough.

But just how the hell could they _not_ be prepared enough? They were burning up, and it was 58 degrees outside. I say, they're good.

"Hey guys," Jazmine spoke up. "Before we get there…wanna pray?" She asked suggestively. Riley and Huey looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"Jazmine, not this again."

"Yeah, what the hell we prayin' fo'?"

"Aye! What you mu'fuckas got against God!" Ed yelled turning around all the way. Everyone shrieked and yelled for him to watch the road as he almost hit a truck. He abruptly turned around in his seat to continue driving correctly. "But yeah, ya'll mu'fuckas atheists? We don't fucks wit' those."

"Ed, shut up." Rummy told his best friend. "Besides, you know Riley ain't no atheist. Remember? He told us about Jesus bein' black, which I believe is highly accurate."

"Highly, what?" Ed dumbly asked. Everyone just ignored him. "What did you say?" Still no response and Ed grew upset.

Huey on the other hand, turned to his brother with wide eyes. Riley looked back at him and raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"You…actually listen to me?" Huey asked dumbfounded. Riley smirked before answering.

"I saiiid, what did you say!"

Okay, he didn't answer like that.

"Yeah, I listen to you all the time. I just don't say nothin' 'bout it." He admitted and shrugged as if it were no big deal. Everyone continued to ignore Ed.

"Don't nonchalantly shrug your shoulders as if this isn't a big deal. This is a very big deal. My brother, Riley Freeman actually listens to me, wow." Huey smirked back and Riley snickered.

"Nigga, shut up."

"If you mu'fuckas don't tell what the hell Rummy said, I'ma drive us off this fuckin' road!"

"Ed!" Rummy yelled. "It's not that damn serious! Calm down."

"Hell naw! Ya'll niggas ain't excludin' _me_ outta shit! Especially in my own fuckin' car!"

"Van."

"Whateva!"

"Hey!" Jazmine yelled, silencing the two. "Shut up! Some of us are _praying_ back here!"

"Jaz, nobody's praying."

"Shut up!" She repeated before realizing she was yelling at her boyfriend. "Sorry,"

"It's okay." He accepted with a chocked eyebrow.

"And Huey, can you please just…pray with me? I promise this'll be the only time I ask you this." Jazmine pleaded in a soft tone. Huey looked at her for a minute and sighed. He knew he was not about to get out of this.

"Fine." He eventually agreed. He expected her to squeal or hug him or do both but she just smiled a little and intertwined her hands with his. For a moment, Jazmine closed her eyes, and Huey waited on her to say something, but as he watched her for a while, her eyes still closed, he realized she was praying in her head. And here he thought she was the type to do it aloud.

Sighing once again, Huey held his head down and genuinely tried to think of something to pray about. He knew he should pray about what was to come, but he didn't exactly know how to do it. He only prayed that one time when Shabazz K. Milton Burrow was on death row and miraculously, Shabazz didn't die.

Huey knew God was real, but he was just confused. He never went to church, except when he visited his Aunt Cookie, and ever since his parents died, his optimism just didn't fully return. He had to be six years old when the policemen came to his door and sympathetically announced to Granddad that they died in a car accident. Thank God Granddad was visiting for the weekend because that's when Huey needed him the most. Riley had only been four years old, so Huey doubted that he remembered their parents. After finding out the news from Granddad, Huey cried. After moving in with Granddad, all week he cried and cried and cried until his tear ducts were dry and every night, he'd sleep with Granddad. Day after day, he forgot about God and praying and all that good stuff. He just grew angry and stoic. He was mad at God for taking away the two people who meant the world to him.

As of now, he understood that God didn't do anything. His parents were just gone. It was an accident, but it was a very effective one and it changed Huey's life forever.

But before you all go crying, I'll stop with Huey's past.

Before praying, Huey looked up to see everyone with their heads down, even Riley. Huey smirked. Riley's such a hypocrite.

And right then and there, Huey knew what he wanted to pray for and he did so. He prayed for his girlfriend, he prayed for his girlfriend's parents, he prayed for his brother, he prayed for his granddad, he prayed for his friends, he prayed for his friends' parents, he prayed for Caesar's aunt, and he prayed for the two retired soldiers in the front. He just prayed that everyone was safe and everyone would make it out unharmed.

"Aye," Rummy softly interrupted everyone's prayers and all heads rose up. "We here." He announced and everyone looked out the window towards a two story house.

* * *

"What the hell do you mean 'I'm done'?"

"Look! I'm sick of this! I didn't do any of this!"

"Brian, stop acting like a little bitch and do as I say!"

"Briana, don't you know that listening to what you say _makes_ me act like a bitch?"

"You know what, leave!" Briana yelled dramatically and swung her front door open.

Brian scoffed. "Briana don't be like that! We're still fam-"

"GO!" She shouted impatiently. Brian sighed and casually walked out the house. He turned around and prepared to say something but was greeted with a door slammed in front of his face. He sighed again and walked down the street. He could've sworn that he heard a car pull up behind him, but he just ignored it and kept on walking.

* * *

_The hell does he mean 'I'm done'? We're family! We're not supposed to be done. We're supposed to stick together!_

Briana the psycho thought as she paced the living room back and forth. Once again, she knew this day would come, but she didn't want it to. She didn't want the only person she could turn to turning on her. She wasn't even done with getting her 'prize'. And damnit, she was going to get her prize!

Just then, a ring of the doorbell stopped her thoughts and she was hesitant about answering it. Sure her cousin just bailed out on her, but he was her cousin after all. She wasn't about to leave him out in the cold.

She walked up to the door and without checking through the peephole, she opened it. That had to be the biggest mistake of her life.

"Freeze, bitch." A very familiar mulatto said, pointing a pink Desert Eagle towards the girl. The man of her dreams stood right beside her with his arms crossed and his famous hard, stoic look on his features. His brother was on the mulatto's other side while everyone else was behind them with their guns pointed towards the Briana.

"Oh shit." Briana softly let out as she realized she wasn't going anywhere. All at once, the mulatto jumped on her and cracked the end of her gat on the girl's head and then, there was darkness.

* * *

Oh snap son! Is this then end of Briana?

Heck naw, this is just the beginning! Review you guys! I'd love to hear from ya! :)


	17. We Need A Resolution

All those daayyuum reviews! *scoffs*

Sike, I love ya'll! :) Really, I do. And I'm sorry for the long wait. I had a small case of writer's block lol but I knew it'd go away soon, so that's why I didn't inform ya'll about that lol but yeah...

Shoutouts to my RODs & my other faithful readers!

Miss Ace Thank You, MissG2020, jayjai107, Youngkong313, MzMinnie, Zolow95, ShellieB, Cruella De' Chelle, Lightning Eyes, Rivi2012, & keyks554! Mannneee, ya'll already KNOW ya'll the best. If I was the type of person to cry over stuff (and...sometimes I do), I'd be crying right now. All the love is just overwhelming, so thanks again guys!

Now, back on my gangsta isshh!

Uhh, yeah niggas so uhh...yeah so liike...

Yeah, i can't be gangsta lol I give up. But enjoy this chapter. And things aren't gonna go the way you expect them to. :O

"Paige, what does that mean?"

FIGURE IT OUT, NIGGA!

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN THE ORIGINAL BOONDOCKS CHARACTERS OR ANY ORIGINAL BOONDOCKS...THING?

* * *

CHAPTER 17: WE NEED A RESOLUTION

"Baby…baby please-"

"Shh." The man shushed the woman as he continued to trail kisses along her neck and collarbone. The woman was at a loss for words at the man's talented lips. He had her every time. He made all of her pain, guilt and self-disgust go away.

Temporarily.

Any other time, she felt like, for lack of a better term, shit. She distanced herself from her family to be with a man who didn't belong to her. They were already caught once by the man's wife…excuse me, _ex_-wife. Now, how long could _she_ keep this up?

She loved her family, but her husband, well…she just didn't feel the spark in their relationship anymore. All the fireworks were gone and before she snuck out of the house, lying about going to work and what not, the nights were awkward. She knew she shouldn't be doing this…this…cheating, but she didn't want to fully give up on her relationship with her spouse either. She just needed a stress reliever.

What, she couldn't have gone to therapy or something?

And not only was her relationship with her husband falling apart, she noticed that she hasn't been around to spend time with her daughter. That's nothing new, but she still felt horrible. She couldn't even deny the fact that she wasn't a very good mother. She was selfish. She wanted what she wanted and not what she needed. She wanted a trifling, spouse cheating, Korean man over a loving, trustworthy family. What was with her?

She didn't know either, but she didn't plan on stopping just yet. The pleasure the Korean man gave her was too good.

Just how long was she going to keep this secret a _secret_? Doesn't she know that what's done in the dark shall come to light?

Guess not.

"Tina." The man pulled his lips away and groaned lowly as she ground her lower body against his. Tina smirked.

"Aw, baby what's wrong?" She teased. "Too much for ya?" She continued to smirk until he began kissing her neck again. Tiny moans and groans filled the room as Tina started grinding against him some more.

After about thirty minutes, the two lay next to each other exhausted from their previous…workout. Tina turned to her secret lover and smiled.

"Y'know, I need to wash up." She got up from underneath the covers and began striding to the door, but turned around to see the man staring at her assets. She giggled and rolled her eyes.

"What you waitin' for? C'mon." She ordered with another smile. The Korean smiled back and stood up.

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Jackson."

* * *

Okay, now Briana was already knocked out, carried to the back of the van, driven to Ed's crib, dropped off in the basement and tied up to a chair.

So why is Jazmine still hitting the girl against her skull?

"Jazmine!" Huey rose his voice after Jazmine's hitting urge started up once again. "She's unconscious! You tryna kill her?" He grabbed her wrist preventing her from striking the girl again. When she tried to kick her, he picked her up and brought her on the other side of the room.

"Why not! She tried to kill us!" She yelled almost causing Riley and Cindy to laugh. She had that soft voice so her acting completely insane was just amusing. They kept quiet though.

"Jazmine, in case you haven't forgotten, we're no murderers. Killing each other doesn't solve shit. It just guarantees someone going to jail and leaves both families in distraught." Huey explained to her in a hard tone. She was annoying the hell out of him. "Cut it out." Jazmine huffed.

"How can you expect me to be calm about this?" She argued. "She…she's a monster!"

Huey sighed heavily. "Just…stay right here." He was tired of everything. They just needed to get this over with.

"Someone need to wake her ass up. We ain't do all this shit just to knock her out." Riley chimed in. Everyone else was posted up against the wall waiting for something to happen. "And Jaz, you want me to be honest?"

"No."

"Well, anyways," Riley ignored her response. "You knockin' her out the first time was gangsta as hell!" Huey rolled his eyes. "But if you keep hittin' her like that, shit ain't gon' eva get done. You just prolongin' the shit."

"I just heard from Huey, thanks." She immediately replied in a flat tone before rolling her eyes. Riley snorted at her attitude.

"Aiight, well as long as you know."

"Aye! I'm sick of this shit!" Ed exploded out of nowhere, not that anyone was surprised. He heavily walked over to the girl and knelt down to level his mouth with her ear. "Aye bitch! Wake yo' ass up!" He yelled. Nothing happened. Ed slumped in defeat.

"Lemme try." Caesar volunteered with a sneaky smile. Ed stood up and walked back over to the wall and Caesar took his place. Caesar was just as tall as Ed, so he knelt down just as Ed did, but instead of yelling, he whispered something in her ear.

And just like that Briana shot up, almost falling forward on her face.

"He loves me?" She yelled in excitement as everyone else, but the war vets, looked at Caesar in shock. Caesar snickered and stood up off the ground.

"Well," He started. "Guess my work here is done." His snicker turned into light chuckles.

"No this nigga didn't!" Riley exclaimed in pure amazement with a smirk.

"Damn, Ceez!" Cindy exclaimed as well before laughing wildly. Caesar just gave a smug smile and shrugged.

Everyone else just stared at Briana as her excitement quickly died down. Shit, she knew she was in trouble now.

"So…" Jazmine began, but when Huey shot her a 'be quiet' look, she rolled her eyes and kept quiet.

Huey turned to face Briana.

"Look. We're no killers," He firmly stated, never keeping his eyes off of her. "So, calm down. We just wanna get something straight." Briana gulped as Huey put his hands on his hips in a non-girly way and looked up the ceiling in mock confusion. "Now, I don't know where you come from, but down here, it's not okay to threaten people by text, hire people to choke other people, break into people's homes, blow up a section of their rooms, frighten little children, lie to other people about nonexistent relationships...y'know, all the bullshit you did." He bluntly informed her, as if she didn't know. Timidly, Briana shook her head.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Huey glared at her just as everyone else did. She gulped once again, but tried to keep her face straight.

Wow, so she wanted to play dumb? Ha!

"Bitch, quit lyin'!" Riley yelled and hurriedly walked over to her. Briana flinched as he nearly got in her face. "You know _exactly_ what the fuck we talkin' 'bout! I'm so sick of yo' lyin' ass! Bitch you ain't even got no reason to lie! The fuck? You ain't good at coverin' yo' tracks! We found out about yo' ass in a matter of days! The fuck you lyin' fo'? Nigga, we know! You ova here thinkin' you a genius and shit, sendin' us anonymous messages!" Riley was so close to hitting her that he almost did until everyone but the girls and Ed held him back. Damn, since when was he _that_ strong?

Briana narrowed her eyebrows, still trying to play stupid. Little did she know, that game would soon come to a standstill.

"And stop lookin' like you don't know what the fuck we talkin' 'bout bitch! Ova there lookin' stupid! You caught, bitch! Time to get real, now!" He continued to rant. She really pissed him off with her act of stupidity. Not that she cared. She just wanted to go home and not face the consequences of her actions. That's the only thing she cared about at the moment.

Oh yeah, and Huey too.

"And why did you yell 'He loves me' if you have no idea what we're talking about." Caesar noted with a wise smirk on his visage. Oh yeah, she was definitely caught now.

Briana opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"Thought so." Caesar added. "Damn," he turned to Lamaar and Marcus. "All the pretty girls are either taken or crazy as hell, huh?"

"Nigga you ain't lyin'." Lamaar agreed as Marcus nodded. Riley was still heated as Huey held him back. Jazmine and Cindy didn't take their eyes off the girl. They both wanted to hurt her so brutally, but they respected Huey's wishes and kept quiet. Ed and Rummy just wanted to be ruthless. They cared about their niggas, but they wanted to do reckless shit. Point blank.

Briana huffed. "I am not crazy! You are!" Wow, so she had the gall to catch an attitude in the state she was in? Pretty damn brave.

"Whoa now." Cindy finally spoke up. "Bitch you have no reason to talk."

"My name's not bitch! It's Briana!"

"What's the difference?" Jazmine butt in as Cindy snorted.

"I just realized something." Caesar casually engaged back in the conversation. "Where's the nigga that was workin' for you?"

The way he easily said that made Briana forget that she was being interrogated. "Oh, that punk straight left me hangin'. Talkin' about 'I can't do this no more' blah, blah, blah bullshit!"

Jackpot.

Everyone in the room smirked as the girl finally confirmed their assumption. What a dumbass.

"I see." Caesar said and shook his head. "And why did he leave you hangin'?"

Briana shrugged, not at all noticing the smirks on everyone's faces. "Nigga's a punk, that's all that is." Caesar nodded as she went on. "He said I went about the way I went childishly and told me to demand what I wanted. So I was like, okay, what the fuck was I gonna say? Y'know, I wasn't about to waltz in Huey's house and drag him away. That's crazy."

Ha.

Caesar tried not to laugh at that as he motioned for her to go on. "But he was just trippin' 'cause he was scared of what would happen, so right before ya'll came to the door, he went home." She laughed hysterically and a few people in the room looked at her funny. "Y'know, if he hadn't bailed out on me, we could've gotten away with so much more."

Caesar cocked his head to the right in confusion. "How so?" he inquired.

Briana scoffed as if the answer was obvious. "Well, for one, he could've been on the lookout to see if anyone would show up to…my…house."

And that's when she realized she was talking a little too much. Damn. Once again I say, what a dumbass.

Caesar nodded as he took note of her realization. "Mm hmm."

Briana just looked around with her mouth agape.

"First off," Huey spoke up again. "I wanna know why you thought you could get away with this if it was just you and the other guy."

"My cousin." She admitted, feeling that lying just wasn't necessary anymore.

"Wow." Huey said in disinterest. "Well why did you think you and _your cousin_ could get away with this? I personally thought it'd be more people than you two. You had us all overly prepared for no reason."

Briana looked directly at Huey, eyeing him up and down. He just stared back at her, waiting for her to respond. She zeroed in on his face and smirked at his cute attitude. Huey responded with a raise of his eyebrow.

"To be perfectly honest," She began in a seductive, well, what she would call seductive, voice. "I didn't think I needed a league of people behind my back."

Jazmine snorted while everyone gave the girl a blank look.

Briana's smile grew a little as she examined his entire body.

"Damn, you sexy." She spoke passionately, still training her eyes on him. Huey, Jazmine and Riley rolled their eyes.

"Give it up, Briana. He's taken." Jazmine said in a much calmer voice. She finally got up off the wall and stood by Huey's side. Briana scoffed at Jazmine before turning back to Huey.

"I don't get it." Rage started to enter the young woman's voice. "Why do you not like me? Why would you choose _her_ over me? I'm intelligent, my grades are exemplary, I can dress, I can cook, I'm cute as hell…I could give you the world, Huey! I'd do anything for you! I'd give you whatever you want! Why choose this stupid, naive girl over me?" The crazy Blasian was in tears now as her anger and confusion seeped out. Huey and the rest of the crew gave her weird looks. What was this girl on?

Huey sighed. Some girls were just so…ugh!

"Okay…" He closed his eyes, trying to process what was going on. "First of all, Jazmine's not stupid. Let's get that straight." Jazmine smirked. "Secondly, Jazmine and I have known each other since elementary and we've been really close, so…yeah, that goes without saying." Riley, Cindy and Jazmine, and Caesar nodded in agreement with light smirks. "And thirdly, I don't even know who the hell you are. I knew nothing about you. I didn't even know your name."

Well if that didn't break Briana's heart, nothing would.

"And just so you know, I'm not attracted to arrogant girls who worry about themselves and nobody else. It pisses me off, actually. How the hell are you worried about makeup or clothes and someone's house is on fire or something?" Dayum! Was he _not_ goin' in? Cindy, Riley, Jazmine, Caesar, Ed, Lamaar and Marcus held in their laughter. Rummy smiled in amusement. Huey just didn't care anymore.

"And though Jazmine can dress, I could care less about how she looks, or how she dresses. It's about personality, not appearance. Appearance is just a plus." Damn, he was pissed. The look on his face was classic. Where's the camera?

"And I don't like to be _given_ anything unless I've earned it. Unlike you, I work for what I have. Nobody gives me anything because I don't _want it_. These people," He pointed to everyone in the room, even Ed and Rummy. "…know that. They know _me_. Whereas you…you don't know me at all!" He raised his voice a little. "How dare you interfere with our lives over some teenage infatuation with me? Someone who doesn't know you, someone who doesn't notice you, and someone who isn't interested in you in any way, shape or form! What kind of a _nigga_ do you think I am? I don't walk around all day lusting over girls because of how they look! And on top of _everything_, you ain't even all that!" Briana gasped as Huey's eyes bored into her with unspeakable anger. "So you can stop pumping yourself up, now."

"GODDAMN, NIGGAAA!" Riley shouted as he and everyone else, excluding Jazmine, almost rolled on the floor with laughter. Jazmine grinned, trying hard not to laugh with everyone else. And it was really hard.

The tears began to form again but Huey held a hand up. "Aye now, don't start cryin' again. No sympathy over here."

Riley, still smiling, stood next to his brother and pointed right in her face, just to be ignorant. Huey actually didn't care this time.

"Aye bitch! My brother don't like yo' ass!" He continued to laugh, barely holding himself up and everyone, but Huey of course, joined in. When Riley was _really_ weak, his laughter was infectious.

"That's my nigga Huey, though! Straight kept it a hun'it!" Cindy added. She could barely get it out. She was laughing that hard.

After the laughter died down, everyone looked at Huey. He looked back uplifting his infamous eyebrow.

"What?"

"Baby," Jazmine spoke up. "What're we gonna do with…_that_?" She pointed to Briana who sucked her teeth in return. Huey shrugged.

"I don't know." He looked her way and then back to the psycho. "I thought she'd be wise enough to have back up, but…guess not." He shrugged again as Briana's jaw dropped. He was calling her dumb now?

"Hey, I'm not-"

"I'd advise you to shut up." Riley cut in. Briana jerked her neck back.

"Nigga, since when did you learn how to speak proper English?"

"Bitch, I'll fuck you up right now! Keep playin' wit' me!"

Briana snorted in amusement. "Oh, so you hit girls now? Oh, that's a real nigga move right there."

"Naw hoe, I don't hit woman, I'll fuck a bitch up though!" Riley got louder, getting in her face as he heard Jazmine and Cindy yell "Yeah, Riley!"

Huey just gave Briana a blank look.

Riley scowled at her as she gave him a cocky smirk in return. He wanted to do nothing more than wipe that shit off. Who the hell did she think she was? Riley turned to Huey for approval of doing…something…to her, but Huey shook his head, knowing exactly what Riley was thinking.

"Nigga, I swear to God, you betta handle this hoe before _I _get to her!" Riley warned, pointing in her direction. "And since we ain't doin' shit, I'ma go upstairs and get some Coke." He announced and turned to everyone. "Ya'll want anything?"

"Pepsi."

"Water."

"Sprite."

"Water."

"Coke."

"Pepsi."

"I'm good."

"Henny!"

Everyone, even the crazy girl in the chair, looked at Ed like he was retarded. He was on his phone, texting one of his bitches with a smirk on his face before looking up. He scrunched his face up and said,

"The fuck…_ya'll_ lookin' at?"

Everyone just shook their heads while Riley exited the room.

* * *

Sunday morning at 8 am has never been so…terrible!

With a mind full of stress and worry, no wonder Stacia felt bad. It was shocking that she actually went to sleep. She's known for being an insomniac when she carries a great load of stress, so someone must be watching over her.

Not only does her stress focus on her friends, but her family as well. What in God's name could her parents be doing that was more important than acknowledging her? She's the only child! She's not that hard to find.

She still hasn't been able to tell them about Cindy's accident…or incident, since it was purposely done. They act like they're so damn busy. They come home late and wake up before Jesus! The only time she'd see them was on Sunday, but now that wasn't even possible. She was stuck at someone else's house, and wasn't sure if it was safe to return to hers just yet.

Her stay at Ms. McPhearson's has been pleasant, but she felt kind of uncomfortable. Not that the woman wasn't nice, she just didn't know her like that. She almost felt like she was an intrusion and she didn't like to be anywhere she wasn't wanted.

Still tired, Stacia yawned and rolled over on her right side to find someone right in her face.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" She screamed before realizing who it was. The girl tripped backwards in shock.

"S-sorry!" she squealed and ran out of the room. Stacia just stared at the door. What just happened?

She sighed and sluggishly threw the covers off of her. She got off the bed and walked out of the room to see Kayla on the living room floor watching Phineas and Ferb. She could tell the girl was nervous which made her sigh again.

"Kayla," She called the girl.

"Hmm?" Kayla asked in a trembling voice, still not looking up.

Stacia smiled and sat down next to the five year old. "Sweetie, relax. I'm fine. You're fine. No harm done. You just shocked me, that's all."

Kayla looked up at the teenager, her deep blue eyes boring into her to seek some truth. Stacia noticed this and put an arm around the girl's shoulders. Just then, Kayla knew they were alright and a bright smile plastered on her little face.

"Okay."

Stacia smiled back at the little girl and pat her head a little. The two just sat there, watching Phineas and Ferb. After a while Kayla looked up at Stacia with worry.

"Stacia?"

Stacia looked down to see the look on Kayla's face and frowned at the sight. "Yeah?"

"…Is everybody alright?" Her voice almost sounded like a whisper.

Stacia felt a lump in her throat. She didn't know how everyone was holding up, actually. She just hoped they were fine.

"I'm sure they are." She said, trying to lighten the dim mood. It didn't really seem to work though, since the expression on Kayla's face didn't change one bit.

Uhh…this is awkward. Kayla stared at her for a little bit before rising up.

"I have to use the bathroom." She shyly announced before walking off with her head hung low. Stacia shook her head.

"Damn. I can't even convince a little girl that everything's fine." She inwardly kicked herself and rested her head in her hands.

Man, she missed everyone already. She missed talking about girl stuff with Cindy and Jazmine, she missed joking with Caesar, she missed getting on Huey's nerves and most of all, she missed Riley. Everything about Riley, from his personality to his appearance. Nothing was out of place. He was faithful and loving and although he still tried to go hard sometimes, he could be the sweetest person on earth. Like _really_ sweet. He'd make Michael Jackson seem like the Grim Reaper.

But at the same time, he was a man, or in his terms, a 'real nigga'. Stacia was more attracted to that than anything. He was a man of his word and just like his brother, he doesn't lie about anything. He may joke from time to time, but lying? Naw, never that.

She smiled as she thought of him. She really did want to marry this guy when they were old enough. He was everything she wanted and more. Basically, he was the man of her dreams and she couldn't wait to see him again. Hopefully today.

She groaned and shook her head again. Maybe it's about time she check on them. Forget that 'harassing them' crap. She had to look out for her people!

She stood up and walked down the hall to the guest room to retrieve her phone.

* * *

"…And I'm already tired and shit, so my mom makes me get up at 6:30 to clean the kitchen." Cindy complained as she told the crew plus Marcus and Lamaar a random story.

This wasn't going the way everyone expected it to go.

The original plan was to go to Briana's kidnap her and keep her in the basement. Then go find the other niggas and take 'em down one by one. But…now there was just one. And she seemed pretty defenseless. This was just all too easy and everyone was pissed off. They were overly prepared, they were tired, and they didn't know what else to do. Call the cops? What would they do? Well she is half black, and ALL minority, so she could easily be thrown into the system, but really other than that, what could they do?

They didn't have enough energy to think of a resolution. They didn't have the patience. They needed rest.

Yeah, that's what they'll do. Sleep. And Briana'll be strapped to the chair in the dark basement until everyone was awake. And yes, _everyone _had to be awake. Not just one person, not just two people, not everyone but one person. They all had to be awake. That's the best they could come up with.

"Hey, ya'll just gonna leave me down here?" She yelled as everyone started walking up the steps.

"Yeah, Amerie!" Caesar yelled back, since he was at the very top. A few snickered at his joke and within a few seconds, the door was slammed shut. On the other side, she could hear the jingling of keys and a click, indicating the door being locked.

She smirked as she knew no one would come back down. They all looked exhausted. Great. Her plan was working. She rotated her shoulders and brought her hands over her head from the back to the front. She was really flexible.

She took the tape off of her wrists and bent down to untie the cord around her ankles. It was tricky, but she managed to untangle them and threw them on the other side of the room. She automatically shot up, but instantly knew that was a mistake. She sat right back down and rubbed her head where the throbbing pain was coming from. She had a small, yet noticeable, gash on the side of her head and she gasped in horror as she felt it with the tip of her fingers.

Dried blood?

"Eww…" She whispered in disgust before flicking the stuff off her fingers. Okay, she was going to get home, cleanse the wound, wrap it in a Coach scarf (yes, she has to stay fashionable) and call up Brian. If ever anything like this would happen again, she'd at least have someone by her side.

As she got up again, slowly this time, she looked around and suddenly she didn't feel so hot. Where the hell was she going to go? There were no windows, and the only door she would be able to go through was the one leading upstairs and it was locked. Great job planning ahead, Briana.

_Not!_

She punched her fist into her hand and let out a low groan. She must really be a dumbass if she thought they weren't smart enough to put her in a place she couldn't escape from. No wonder they didn't strap her into the chair well enough. They didn't need to. She had nowhere to go.

She groaned again and tears began to well up. She was so frustrated with herself, with the whole ordeal that she was crying.

_That's right. Cry you little baby. Cry like you always do! _She inwardly yelled at herself. She hated crying. She hated being emotional, and most of all, she hated when _she_ was the cause of it. She was in this predicament because of _her_ childish antics, because of _her_ unhealthy obsession with someone who paid her no mind at all! She was the cause of everything bad that went on in her life. No wonder her father never paid her any mind. No wonder he went off sticking his thing into other women when he should've been at home tending to the two individuals that were supposed to be most important in his life. She was like a bad omen, and she knew it. Her own cousin bailed out on her, and although she was pissed, she understood why he did it. She was so damn controlling! She took over his life! She wondered why he hadn't given up on her sooner.

In all honestly though, she knew he did it because of love. No matter how off the chain she was, he was always there for her and though she'd never ever admit it, he was one of the few people she really loved, other than her mother. He probably was the only one other than her mom that she loved. She couldn't really confirm that about her dad though. She had mixed feelings about him. Nevertheless, she seemed as if it was her fault anyways. The people who still stood by her just seemed to have weak will power.

She just walked back over to the hard, uncomfortable chair, sat down, and covered her face with her hands. All of a sudden, she felt bad. She felt stupid. She didn't want to do this anymore. What was she doing chasing around a taken young man and ruining peoples' lives? What was she doing? She didn't know, but she intended to stop. If only someone would give her a chance to speak out. She knew they didn't want to hear anything she had to say. Oh well, she could try.

So deep in her thoughts, she didn't notice the door open and a certain someone walking down the stairs. She just continued to cry silently and wonder why everything in her life turned out…horribly.

"Tryin' to escape, huh?" the voice made her nearly jump out of her skin and she shot her head up before it started throbbing again. She hissed in pain and put her hand in the same dried up spot. She really had to stop doing that.

She slowly looked up again, still wincing from the pain, and yelped at the deep wine colored eyes boring into her. She remained silent, anticipating his next move.

"Calm down." He told her before rolling his eyes. He walked over to her and she froze. What's he doing? " I said, calm down." He reiterated again. She was still frozen on the spot and he sighed. "Whatever."

It was then that she noticed he had a white rag in one hand and a brown bottle in the other. She watched as he opened the cap to the bottle and placed the rag over it before turning it over. She rose her eyebrow in confusion. He put the cap back on the bottle and placed it on the ground.

"Now, don't think just because I'm doin' this," He started as he tilted her head to the right."We're cool. As I said before, we're no killers so we're not leavin' you down here to die."

Briana winced again as the cool rag came in contact with her open wound. She winced even more as she felt the liquid burning her.

"Ah! What the hell is that?" She exclaimed, twisting her face up in obvious pain. He rolled his eyes. She's so dramatic.

"It's peroxide. It's supposed to sting. That means it's working. Now be quiet." He instructed her as he held the rag to her wound and rubbed the dried up blood off of her. That gash was pretty ugly and he smirked as he thought of Jazmine. Lord, she was a handful.

After a few minutes, the wound was clean and he reached in his back pocket to pull out another rag. He carefully wrapped it around her forehead like a scarf and tied it tight.

Without a word her picked up the filthy rag and threw it in the trash. He picked the bottle up from the floor and turned on his heels. It wasn't until he reached the bottom of the stairs when Briana finally decided to say something.

"Huey…" Her voice was soft and timid, which was very unusual, very…not Briana.

"What?" He responded with a sigh. He couldn't wait to hear this one.

"…Thanks." She said, not even looking at him. She actually turned her body completely, not wanting him to see her so broken anymore. It was embarrassing.

"Whatever." Huey said uncaringly and began trotting up the stairs, but her voice stopped him again.

"And I'm sorry." Her voice was lighter this time and it seemed to have cracked. Huey drew his eyebrows together in confusion. He didn't want to believe her, but that didn't stop her from sounding so believable. Was she really sorry, or was she trying to trick him? He decided to test her.

He walked back down and stood about two feet away from her. He crossed his arms and looked her way, although she was still turned around. "So, exactly_ what_ are you sorry about?"

From the back, he saw the Blasian girl shake her head and let out a little laugh. "For everything."

Huey rolled his eyes again. Just get to the point, girl!

As if she read his mind, she continued. "For interfering into you guys' lives, for ordering my cousin to hurt Cindy, for blowing up your house, for lying about my false relationship with you," He heard her sniffle and her voice getting thick. So, was she serious? He couldn't tell. "for blowing up your house, for disrespecting you and Jazmine's relationship, for trying to split you two up, for being a total jerk, for being a dumbass, for having met you at all, for sneaking into the files in the principal's office for you guys' numbers…" Huey raised an eyebrow again. So _that's_ how she got their numbers. "for arguing with your brother, for crying in front of you, for not being able to be loved by my father," And now she was rambling and she went faster and faster.

Whoa! Where'd that come from?

Huey's expression remained the same, but his assumption was confirmed. This girl really had problems and she was dead serious. Anytime someone threw a subject about their family into the conversation, you know it's real.

"and for being so controlling over my cousin's life, for splitting my family apart, and for being the reason," Her voice was almost incoherent. She was sniffling like crazy and the messed up part, Huey actually felt bad for her…to an extent. "the _only_ reason everyone's life is so fucked up." She did a long sniffle and let out another small laugh. "I'm just a sorry ass person, huh?"

She didn't expect a response, and that's exactly what she got. Nothing.

Huey just stared at her for a minute before turning on his heel, but before walking off, he had something to say.

"Much of your pain is the bitter potion by which the physician within you heals your sick self: Khalil Gibran." He quoted. With a tear stricken visage, Briana turned her body his way to see him about to walk off. "I've lived by the quote since as long as I can remember." He continued as Briana tilted her head, listening to him intently.

Huey closed his eyes as he recalled his early childhood life.

"See…my parents died in a car accident when I was six." He heard her gasp behind him. "And to be honest, it took me a long time to start smiling and laughing again. I'm still not the exact same person I was when I was six, partly because I'm growing up, and partly because I'm still trying to cope with the death of my parents."

That just made Briana feel much worse. She had no idea.

"But you know, I don't sit around and mope about it, and neither should you. You should try to better yourself rather than letting your family issues take over you and turn you into something you shouldn't be." He then walked towards the stairs and turned back to her before walking up. "If you need help, find it." And with that he walked up and out the room, leaving Briana Taylor alone in her thoughts.

* * *

A change of heart? Perhaps. We'll see what happens next.

And are the two lovers at the beginning who I think they are? :0! Only one way to find out. Review please!


	18. Understanding

Sup, sup, sup!

Shoutouts to the wonderfullll reviewers! Miss Ace Thank You, jayjai107, MissG2020, Youngkong313, Cruella De 'Chelle, ShellieB, Arena, Lightning Eyes, & IMARealOG55! Love ya'll!

DISCLAIMER: ALL COPYRIGHTS GO TO MR. AARON MCGRUDER WITH HIS FIIINEE SELF! AND SONY...I THINK?

I'm back with another one! :) Ya'll know I hate to disappoint, so here's chapter 18 for ya. Hope you like it! And don't be mad you guys! That's all I'ma say lol. In the words of Uncle Ruckus...

READ, NIGGA! REEEAD! *holds book in face*

Oh wait...this isn't published in a book...

Read anyways lol

* * *

CHAPTER 18: UNDERSTANDING

"Go'on head Ceez, do it for the people one time!" Lamaar encouraged as Caesar got ready to spit a few bars. It was almost noon and everyone was up, chilling in Ed's living room on the couches. They didn't sleep too long so the energy they had wasn't on full, but at least they had a hell of a lot more than before. Periodically, either Huey or Caesar would go downstairs to check on the 'prisoner'. Huey didn't tell anyone about their little conversation earlier, and surprisingly, every other time he checked up on her, she didn't intend to hold one. She quietly ate and drank the water and cereal supplies and when Huey checked the wound, she didn't even flinch or cringe. It was like she was dead to the world.

Huey found it odd, but he couldn't help but think that he's really gotten through to her with that quote. It _was_ a pretty deep one and it _does_ get one thinking…a lot.

Caesar smiled broadly and shook his head, dreads swinging from side to side.

"Ya'll ain't ready for me, though." There was a collective groan and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Ah, nigga you can't rap." Riley joked.

"Yeah, you ain't tuff, nigga." Marcus chimed in with a smirk. Caesar raised one eyebrow and stood up.

"Really, now?" He stood in the middle of the living room, separated from everyone by a coffee table.

"Yep." Cindy added, trying to keep a straight face. Caesar turned to her and smirked.

"Like I said, ya'll ain't ready, but aiight. Here we go."

The girls leant up a bit in anticipation while the boys just laid back.

_I'm young…with a grown mentality  
Come across a snapper rapper like me, choose fatality  
I'm a threat to the nation 'cause I distinguish reality  
From fantasy, antsy people don't like it so they mad at me_

"Dayum…" Ed and Rummy muttered in awe. This dude was _nice_, and he wasn't even done yet.

_But one thing about me…I don't care  
Attitude like forget it 'cause all people wanna do  
Is tear ya down  
And wear ya down  
After you done came up  
Name up  
They don't want you around_

"Shit…" Came another profanity from Riley this time. Jazmine and Cindy looked at each other in astonishment. Huey was just chilling. He knew Caesar was a beast.

_It's okay, aye…I'm doin' me  
Truth be told, that's my main priority  
You don't like it?  
So be it  
Keep actin' funny  
But didn't Pac say...only God can judge me?  
Speakin' of Pac, he said he was a sucker for love  
Well I'm a sucker for that  
And I'm a sucker for hugs  
And I'm a sucker for reasoning  
And a sucker for mugs  
But if ever you do me wrong, this sucker turn to a thug  
BROOKLYN, BABY!_

"WHOO HOO HOO HOO! My nigga a BEAST!" Riley yelled and dapped Caesar up hard.

"Riley! Why ain't you tell me this dude was fuckin' raw!" Rummy exclaimed with a wide smile. Riley shrugged.

"Nigga,_ I_ ain't even know he was that nice."

"Hell yeah! Nigga that was crazy! I ain't even understand some of the words you was sayin'!" Ed yelled, dapping Caesar up as well. Yeah, that sounds about right.

Caesar went to take his seat right between Lamaar and Cindy and earned a few more praises from everyone.

Just then, Riley's phone rang.

_Turn your lights down low  
Never ever try to resist, oh no-_

"Okaaay!" Riley loudly blurted out as everyone laughed.

"Was that Lauryn Hill?" Jazmine asked, teasing him. When Huey turned his head away from them, Riley quickly flicked her off and pulled out his loud phone.

"I'm telling!" Jazmine shouted, before giggling, getting Huey's attention.

Riley smirked and put the phone to his ear.

"Hello?"

"_Riley!"_

Ah, Stacia. He was so happy to hear her voice that he couldn't wipe that goofy grin off his face.

"Hey baby! I missed you." He exclaimed just as she did. Heads turned to his direction and he decided he didn't want to talk in front of them. He excused himself and walked elsewhere.

"Aw, that's cute." Cindy cooed with a smile. "Riley loves his girl."

"Why wouldn't he? They've been together since…"

"Forever."

Jazmine and Huey said. They looked at each other and smiled.

And so did Cindy.

"Yeah, and so have you niggas. Ya'll know ya'll love each other!" She bellowed, all up in Caesar's ear.

"Damn, Cindy!" he complained, covering his ears. Cindy smirked and apologized.

"But ya'll know ya'll in love, though." The couple rolled their eyes.

"Cindy, be quiet." Huey ordered.

Cindy snorted. "Fine, but ya'll know it's true, that's why ya'll not denying it."

This was true.

"And I know ya'll would never let no _bitch_ come between ya'll." She referred to Briana and everyone either smiled or laughed.

"Cindy, don't you have somewhere to be." Huey inquired, knowing damn well they weren't going anywhere anytime soon. He just wanted her to get off the subject. Cindy got the message.

"Okay, okay." She quieted down.

"FINALLY!" Lamaar yelled, referring to his game on his phone, but everyone thought he was referring to Cindy. She threw a pillow at his head as everyone laughed.

"Oh, naw I didn't mean you Cindy." He informed. "I finally passed this damn level on this bootleg ass Pac Man game."

"Oh," was all she said before sitting back in her seat. "My bad, then."

"No problem."

Marcus shook his head. "This nigga forever mellow. I wish a bitch _would_ hit me with a pillow and-"

Well, he got his wish, didn't he?

"Nigga, you callin' me a bitch?" She screeched, shutting him up instantly. After the pillow connected with his face, that is.

"Aiight, I'll see ya soon. Love you." Riley walked back in and took his seat at the end of the long sofa next to Huey. He hung up and sighed heavily.

"Well, I told Stacia what went down and everything. She said she was stressin' over this shit, but now she cool. She told me to tell ya'll she missed ya'll, though."

"Aw, we miss her too." Jazmine said with a smile.

"Yeah…" Riley trailed as he slumped lower into the sofa. It was feeling too good, but he noticed how lazy he was becoming the more he sat there.

Like he cared.

The room was silent for a minute, but it was comfortable.

"Yo…I miss her like crazy…" Riley broke the silence, speaking to either everybody, or nobody at all. Regardless, everyone turned to him.

"Yeah, but you sayin' it as if she dead. She gon' be okay, bruh." Caesar assured. Riley nodded.

"I know, but how can I function without my girl by my side."

Lamaar and Marcus looked at each other with matching smirks and looked back at Riley.

"Oh, nigga shut yo' lovey dovey ass up." Lamaar joked as Marcus snickered. Riley looked their way and flicked them off with a smirk of his own.

"Well ya'll niggas definitely know how to cheer a nigga up."

"Yeah, well you know us."

Riley rolled his eyes and sighed as he let his mind wander off to Stacia.

Stacia Jackson; his little chocolate drop. Damn, he loved her. She was certainly a handful, but she was never too much for him. Even when they argued, never did it cross his mind that he'd walk away from her or vice versa. As corny as it sounds, she was his everything. He believed it was her who straightened him out, made him actually grow up. It was her who influenced him to do his work, to study, to get on top of things and take control of his life. Of course Huey tried to influence him, but taking advice from family didn't seem effective to Riley back then. If it weren't for Stacia, he wouldn't know where he'd be. Granddad would probably have already thrown him out of the house or something. He probably wouldn't have a decent relationship with his brother. It was amazing how much this one girl changed his life.

She was classy, but she didn't play around. She was nice, but she would never let anyone come at her incorrect, unless they wanted a beat down. She was girly, but she knew how to have fun. She was fly as hell, but she wasn't arrogant. She was bright, but she wasn't nerdy. She was cool, down to earth, funny, beautiful, smart…every positive word in the dictionary, and he loved that.

"This nigga daydreaming and shit." He heard someone say, snapping him out of his thoughts. He saw that everyone was standing up, waiting for him.

"What?"

Huey raised an eyebrow. "Get up." Riley raised his too.

"Why?"

"We're going to the store to get somethin' to eat, and I know you don't wanna be here alone with Br-"

"Don't EVEN say the bitch's name! Aiight, I'm up." Riley yelled and immediately rose up from his seat. If they kept him at the house alone, he'd go downstairs and kill that bitch.

* * *

Stacia was all ready to go. Once she heard about what happened, she knew it was safe for her to go home. She might even stop by Ed's just to see what was going on for herself.

She was in a giddy, happy mood and before the hugs and goodbye's from the McPhearsons, everyone looked at her as if she was insane. She giggled every time she said something and smiled so much that people thought her jaws would hurt. The thing is, she didn't care! Her friends, family and boyfriend weren't in danger.

Driving down the street she decided to put on some 'feel good' music and popped in her reggae mix CD. The first song that came on was her and Riley's favorite reggae song; Turn Your Lights Down Low.

She sang the song in a halfway decent voice. She couldn't really sing, she knew that, but she loved that Riley could. He'd sing to her on special occasions in a slightly raspy, yet smooth and sensual voice. She smiled as she continued to sing and think of him.

_Turn your lights down low  
Never ever try to resist, oh no  
Oh, let your love come shining in  
Into our lives again  
Saying ooh, I love you  
And I want you to know right now  
Ooh I love you  
And I want you to know right now  
That I, that I_

As said before, she couldn't really sing, but she sang her heart out nonetheless, happy tears rolling down her cheeks. She loved that boy.  
_  
I wanna give you some love  
I wanna give you some good, good loving  
Oh I, oh I, oh I  
I wanna give you some good, good loving_

She continued to sing until it was near the end.

_I'm comin' home to you baby. _She thought. She was approximately thirty five minutes away from home.

* * *

Something was wrong. Something was _very_ wrong. No texts, no calls, no tweets, no Facebook status, no instant messages, nothing.

But when you finally tell your cousin after all these years that you don't want to partake in their world anymore, what do you expect? An invitation?

Still, something wasn't right, and Brian could feel it. Briana would never completely ignore him. It just didn't make sense that she couldn't have at least sent him an angry text or something. She was known for doing things like that.

What if something happened? What if he backed out at the wrong time? Ooh, ooh! What if they finally caught on to her and were torturing her in a basement with no windows or escape routes and she was suffering from a blow to the head!

He thought about it for a second, before emitting a,

"Naaaww." In his mind, that'd never happen. They were too careful…weren't they?

He brushed it off and stood up to finally take his shower. She was probably being as stubborn as usual. She'll come around.

* * *

It was 12:30 PM when church was finally over. It was quick, but the message was a strong, powerful one.

One that didn't sit well with Mrs. Tina Jackson.

As she stood by her husband, flashing phony smiles and showing false interest in other church members' conversations, she couldn't help but think of how dirty she was. The pastor really spoke to her soul, and after crying out to God to forgive her, she couldn't deny it anymore. She was unfaithful and untrustworthy. She was completely ashamed with herself.

"_The problem I have today is with these church folks," The pastor said in all seriousness. "Now I know I'm gon' upset some people up in here." A few 'amen's and 'preach' were thrown his way. "But what I got to say needs to be said."_

_The Jacksons sat in the second row on the left side of the church, and usually the pastor would look their way when he preached. Not because he thought they were the ones doing wrong, but he was just used to looking in that direction. However, Tina felt something within her soul as the man looked in his direction and said these words._

"_We wanna come to church all dressed up, lookin' good, hair all done up, suit lookin' like we just got it from the cleaners, but we keep forgettin' that God don't care about none of that! It's about your character, the way you treat people, the way you live your life, and most definitely about the way you praise and serve him." More people in the sanctuary threw words of encouragement towards him, some of them being one of those people he described. _

_Mr. Jackson nodded in agreement, but Mrs. Jackson just stared at the pastor, listening to him speak and it wasn't long before she felt tears rolling down her cheeks. She wanted to change, she really did, but what was she to do? And how could she do it? The man she cheated on her husband with was capable of ruining her life. As successful as he was, he could make sure she wouldn't be able to work in Woodcrest again, or he could just simply tell her husband what's been going on behind his back. At first, the first option was the worst one, but after the sermon, number two was most assuredly the worst possible one._

_What was she going to do?_

_The preacher was reaching the end of his sermon, when God felt it was necessary for her to cry out and repent. She didn't know why God made her wait until church nearly ended, but she didn't care. She was determined to turn her life around, but how was she going to do it?_

The ride home was expected to be silent and awkward, as usual. This time was different though. Tina couldn't stop thinking about what the pastor had said. She was looking out the window, trying to figure out what to do with herself. Not only that, but this time Mr. Jackson decided to talk.

"Baby…"

She turned to him from the window, but he didn't look at her. His eyes were paying attention to the road, but he had this…look in his eyes she couldn't make out.

"Mm hmm." She answered. He didn't say anything else, so she answered him again. "Anton, what is it?"

He sighed heavily as he drove up to pass through a yellow light.

"Nothing, nevermind."

"No, just tell me."

"I SAID…nevermind." As he rose his voice at the start, Tina jerked her neck back. What's his problem?

"Uh…okay." She didn't know what to say after that outburst, so as usual…silence.

As the finally reached their home, the two of them trudged in and went into the room.

After twenty minutes of doing nothing but changing out of their dress clothes and lying on the bed to watch TV, Tina got a call on her cell. She looked to see who it was and winced.

Her secret lover.

Or luster…whatever.

She eyed her husband and saw him looking at the television with a calm demeanor. She inwardly sighed and shook her head. He must have no idea. She had to stop this. She couldn't take it anymore. She was going to have to leave that Korean nigga if it was the last thing she'd ever do. She had to make an encounter with him first though.

"Baby, I gotta go. Some last minute business I need to attend to."

Anton looked her way with a bewildered expression that read, 'Are you serious?' all over it.

"Work? On a Sunday?"

Tina shrugged. "Yeah, but trust me, it won't happen again."

_I'll make sure of that._

He just stared at her for a long time, watching her fidget nervously. He shook his head and turned to the TV once again.

"Fine." Tina frowned, but turned on her heels. As she opened the door, she couldn't believe her ears.

"But just know, I love you baby." God. She could literally feel the hurt and pain she caused as he said that. Did he know?

He sounded so…sad. She didn't want to turn around to face him. She knew she couldn't. She couldn't bare the pain.

"I know babe. I love you too." She muttered, but made sure he could hear her. She then closed the door and soon headed out to end this thing once and for all.

* * *

"Ain't nothin' like a double cheeseburger from Mickey D's!" Marcus exclaimed. Riley scrunched his nose.

"Nigga, please! That fake ass meat. Besides, Taco Bell is where it's at! Fuck the bullshit!"

"…but that's fake meat too, though." Lamaar butt in. Riley and Cindy snapped their head in his direction.

"What?" they both said, not wanting to believe it.

"Yeah, didn't you hear? It was on the news. It said something about the meat being mysterious." Caesar added.

Riley and Cindy both turned to Huey, who just looked at them and narrowed his eyes.

"Why ya'll lookin' at me? You heard what he said."

They both looked at each other, looked down at their Taco Bell bags and grimaced.

"Uh…on second thought…fuck Taco Bell! Nigga where's that left over salad!" Huey rolled his eyes as Riley and Cindy threw their bags away. What a waste of money.

"You have to _make it_, Riley." He said, pointing to his Food Lion bag. While everyone else went to Taco Bell, KFC, and McDonalds, he and Jazmine went to Food Lion to get premade salad, shredded cheese, and dressing. Jazmine wanted chicken in hers, so she bought some precut chicken strips.

"Aiight." Riley didn't even feel like arguing today. His baby was on her way over there. "Aye, anyone gon' feed the bitch?" The way he said it made it sound like she was an animal. Cindy snickered.

"Yeah, we're giving her salad." Jazmine announced. "But she's not getting any dressing, or cheese. It's just going to be dry."

"Oh the torture." Huey mocked while rolling his eyes. Riley laughed. Huey was an ass sometimes.

Jazmine sucked her teeth and the two of them walked into the kitchen to make the salads. Everyone else just went back to the living room and turned on the TV.

_She's your Queen to-hoo beee!_

Immediately they all busted out laughing.

"Coming To America? Yo, I ain't seen this shit in years!" Riley yelled as he sat back next to Cindy, who sat next to Caesar, who sat next to Lamaar, who sat next to Marcus. Ed and Rummy sat on the other sofa to the left.

"Me too!" Cindy added before they all continued watching the movie. Within minutes, Huey and Jazmine moseyed in the living room, each of them holding two plates of salads.

"Here," Huey said as he gave Riley a plate. Riley looked down and smiled as he saw some chicken strips dispersed in it with Italian dressing on top.

_This nigga know what I like._

"Aye, good lookin' out, nigga."

Huey nodded and turned as he heard the movie. "Coming To America?"

"Oh! I love this movie!" Jazmine squealed after giving Cindy her plate with chicken salad as well. She sat down next to Riley and watched the movie with everyone else.

Huey shrugged and sat down next to her. The movie wasn't bad, he just didn't feel like watching it. If anything, he wanted to go home and do something about that enormous gaping hole in his room.

* * *

There was going to be hell to pay if someone didn't do something about that big ass hole in Robert Freeman's home!

"This is some bullshit. I can't even rely on two nearly-grown ass negroes to take care of my house!" He ranted as he stood in front of his house, looking straight into the boys' room. He shook his head and grunted before storming into his home and picking up the phone. "Ohh, they in troubllee now! Messin' with the wrong brotha, that's what ya done did." He went on and on, ranting and carrying on before the phone finally picked up.

"Aye boy! What the hell did you do to my house! I can't even leave the house for one day before ya'll turn my house into Baghdad!"

"_Granddad, we-"_

"Oh ho, naw don't explain nothin'! Ya'll betta get ya'll black asses back here and fix up my house!" He then pressed end on the phone and continued to mutter angrily. These boys must've lost their minds.

He was about to walk in the kitchen to get some orange juice, but he heard a hissing sound coming from the bathroom. He stopped in his tracks and looked towards the closed bathroom door.

Not even worried about his safety, at all, he decided to walk in.

"There better not be no damn snakes up in here." He said. Then, something hit him. That smell was…odd.

And if he hadn't pass out seconds later, he would've found out that it was knock out gas.

* * *

Huey sighed hard. Granddad just didn't listen very well, and he wasn't even trying to.

"What's wrong?" Jazmine asked, still watching the TV, but turning her chin as if she's about to look his way. Huey shook his head.

"Nothing really, just Granddad being his usual self."

"Oh, I understand." Jazmine nodded. They all knew how that old guy was.

"I'd be upset too, though if I found a part of my house missing."

Jazmine thought for a second before nodding again. "Yeah, I agree."

"I agree, too. Shit, I wish a bitch would try that shit again. Ain't gon' be no pickin' up and lockin' in basements. Bitch gon' be hurt." Riley said, before paying attention to the movie again. "Now ya'll shut the fuck up."

The couple rolled their eyes, but sat back. It wasn't long before they were done with their salads, so Huey decided to give Briana the salad they had fixed for her in the kitchen.

"I'll be back." He told Jazmine. She nodded giving him a quick kiss.

"Aww!" Cindy teased. They just ignored her.

* * *

What time was it? How long has she been down there? How many days has it been? When was she getting out of there?

Briana knew none of this. It's only been about eight hours, but to her, it felt like forever. She hadn't even eaten yet. And they say they're no killers, ha!

But that's not what's really on her mind.

She couldn't help but think about the last thing Huey said to her, which seemed like forever ago. That quote and his mini background history…got her thinking. That's all she's been doing since then; thinking. Not complaining, not crying, not talking, not sleeping, not walking…none of that. She just sat on the floor against the wall and continued to think.

She thought about her childhood and how evil she was to the kids. She teased and taunted them and broke their hearts as she told them the truth about Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, Cupid, the Tooth Fairy, and any other imaginable thing. She was a child of little compassion or remorse. And her weak cousin tagged along with her by force. She actually threatened to cut his…lower region…off if he ever turned his back on her, but she didn't remember that. Brian did though. It's not like she was serious, he was family, but with her…you could never tell.

She shook her head at the memory. What a monstrosity of a little girl she was. She never had any real friends, she never had slumber parties, she never played with dolls…she never knew how to be a kid.

All thanks to her asshole of a father, but she still thinks she's the reason he didn't care about them.

He did love her, she knew that, but he sure had a funny way of showing it. What father doesn't hug or kiss their child, or scold them for the little things they do? What father shakes his head or grunts when they show him the trophy they won in a sport or contest? What father can't see when their child is trying to please him and shuts their child out completely? What father doesn't keep in touch with his daughter after divorcing his wife?

So many questions go through her head that, once again, she doesn't notice the same Afro wearing young man walking down the staircase.

"Well," he started. She's not surprised, but she is sort of caught off guard. He walks closer to her and bends down a little to give her the food. "Here's your salad."

She nodded and took it, avoiding eye contact with him. She glanced at the food and dug in right away. She didn't care about the absence of cheese or dressing…she was hungry! Why be picky?

Huey stared at her in shock as she hurriedly continued gulfing that stuff down. She felt eyes on her and stopped a moment to look his way. Well, that's embarrassing.

Her cheeks turned red as she looked down at the ground. "…Sorry…"

Huey snorted and shook his head. "Why are you apologizing? Just eat." He turned around to go upstairs, but he turned back all of a sudden. Something was on his mind.

He stared at the girl, still devouring the salad, for a minute and made his way back over to her. She's shocked to see him coming back to her, but she's even more surprised as she sees him sitting down on the floor, right next to her.

"Look." He said. "I do _not_ appreciate what you did to us…invading our privacy…but we can't take you to prison. Know why?"

Briana had no idea what he was thinking. To be honest, she was kind of scared. "No." she says lowly.

Huey sighed and folded his arms, getting more comfortable. Briana had a feeling he'd be down there for a while. "Because, we'd go to prison too." he looked at her and noticed how her eyebrows drew together.

"I…don't understand." She responds, still using the light voice. "…I was the asshole who tormented you guys…why should you guys suffer?"

Huey sighed again. "Well, knocking someone out, kidnapping them and locking them in a basement isn't exactly a legal thing." He explained. Briana nodded, but she didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to be locked up, she didn't want to go to rehab, she didn't want to go to counseling, she just wanted to go home and live her life, but she knew she couldn't do that. She couldn't just walk out of here knowing the people's lives she tried to ruin let her go. Hey, call her crazy, but she's been called that before so why stop?

"I hear you, but it's my fault, though."

Huey raised an eyebrow at her. "…I know this,"

"And yet, you're still letting me go." She sounded a little annoyed. "Just turn me in for Heaven's sake. I won't say anything about you guys. I put that on my life." She said in the most sincere, yet tiring, voice she's ever used. Huey didn't say anything, he just looked at the girl with his eyebrow raised.

Briana sighed heavily and rested her head on the wall, wincing a bit as she felt the pain. She just looked straight ahead. "I know it may be hard for you to believe, but…I'm tired." Huey continues to look her way in silence. "I've been an asshole for too long, maybe it's time I change and face the consequences." She looked down at the little bit of salad she had left on her plate and smirked. She didn't realize how quickly she was scarfing that stuff down.

She looked back at Huey with guilt all over her face. "And please believe me when I say, I'm sorry for all the shit I've done to ya'll. I'm not even bullshitting." She shook her head and sighed and turned away from him again. "And don't get me wrong, you're very attractive and all…" She looked at him again with a small smile. Not a sneaky smirk, not an evil grin, but just a timid tiny smile. "…but…you're not mine. And if I have to try to break up a relationship to get someone I want, they probably weren't meant to be mines to begin with." She shrugged and went back to eating her salad as Huey was still staring at her, amazed, though he didn't want to admit, by her sudden wisdom.

"…You've been thinkin' a lot down here haven't you?" He couldn't help but ask and earned a chuckle out of the biracial young woman.

"You could say that." She replied with yet another shrug, still eating. The two sat in silence for a minute, just chilling on the floor of the basement.

"…So, how are you gonna do it?" He questioned. Briana was quiet for a second and sighed.

"I guess I'll just have to go to the police station and turn myself in. Gotta face the music one way or another. Why wait when I could get out sooner if I do so now?"

Huey shook his head and couldn't help but smirk. This girl was not the same girl he argued with hours earlier. Where did this infinite knowledge come from?

"Wow,"

She turned to him and noticed his smirk. "What?"

"Who are you?"

Briana giggled lightly and ate the last of her salad. "I'm Briana Taylor. Don't you remember that lovely greeting on your doorstep?"

Huey rolled his eyes. "Don't remind me."

Briana laughed at his response and shook her head, almost forgetting that they weren't friends. When she stopped she looked at him.

"…Huey?"

"Yeah?"

"…Thanks…"

Huey looked at her and uplifted that eyebrow. "For what?"

She smiled sweetly. "For checking on my head wound, for giving me this salad," she paused for a second. "for the quote, for the advice…and for hearing me out. I really appreciate it." Huey lifted his brow again.

"You sure you're not sayin' that 'cause you like me?" Briana laughed again and rolled her eyes.

"Nigga don't get cocky, you ain't all that!" She joked. To her great surprise, Huey smirked again and rolled his eyes.

"Well, no problem." He finally said and lifted up off the ground. He'd been down too long and he knew everyone was going to interrogate him about it. Whatever.

Briana smiled again and gave him her plate to put in the sink. He kindly took it in his hands and looked at her one last time. "I may be blunt, sarcastic, and have a low tolerance for bullshit," he started, making Briana laugh again. "but I'm not heartless. I know what's real and what's not, and I believe you…but," He shook his head. "Try telling that to everyone else."

Briana nodded in agreement. She knew they weren't as understanding as Huey was. "I know. It doesn't hurt to try though."

Huey nodded. "Yeah, but for now just don't say anything. They'll never shut up." He said while Briana smiled at him and nodded again. He walked up the steps saying nothing more and Briana stayed on the floor, still smiling.

Sure she was going to face some challenges, but she wasn't going to let that get in the way of her new attitude. She wasn't going to let her family issues get in the way of her character either. She wanted to live her life the best way she could and actually make friends. She wanted to have a _real_ relationship with her cousin without controlling him and she wanted to stop blaming her father's problems on herself. He was the grimy one, not her. She wanted to become, in the words of Maya Angelou, a 'Phenomenal Woman'. She was going to change for the better.

And because of that, her smile wasn't about to get wiped off her face for a while. Nothing or no one was bringing her down from her ultimate high on life.

* * *

Awww maann! Huey, I know you not gettin' soft on me baby! *shakes head* Always gotta be the voice of reason and shit.

Anyways, review please. I think Huey's lost his mind. Ya'll should comment on that lol.


	19. Shit Happens

Hey guys, sorry for the wait. College (yay!) is about to start in a few weeks and I'm just getting stuff ready for _thaatt_, so that's why I haven't posted in over two weeks. So yeah,

Shout outs!

Rivi2012 (Read her story please. It's pretty good!), ShellieB, Youngkong313, jayjai107, and MissG2020. Didn't get as many reviews on this one, but it's cool lol.

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING BUT THE OCs!

Heads up, this is the last chapter at Ed's house. Briana will be turned in and all will be happy!

Almost.

Just read and you'll find out. :)

* * *

CHAPTER 19: SHIT HAPPENS

Nearing closer and closer to the extravagant hotel, Tina could feel her heart practically jumping out of her chest. To say she was nervous was an understatement; she was terrified! She had a really bad feeling about this and something told her to wait a while longer, but she had to stop this now.

She gave a big sigh, trying to steady her breathing and slow her heart rate.

_It's okay, Tina. You can do this. You can do this!_

She mentally coached herself.

_Do it for your family._

It took a few minutes, but she finally pulled into the Marriott parking lot and took the key out of the ignition. She sat in the same spot for a minute, sighed, and got out. She looked around to find his car, and sure enough there it was; a champagne colored Porsche, three cars down.

She shook her head and sprinted to the hotel. She didn't know why she was running. She was so messed up in the head right then that she didn't even _care_ to know why she was running.

"Ah, Mrs. Jackson. Back again I see." The snooty light skinned woman behind the counter noted. She grimaced as she saw what Tina was wearing; jeans, and a dark green sweater. Her shoes were white air force ones, which was a very unusual sight to see. Especially that damn ponytail in the back of her head. "And you look like shit, girl."

Tina didn't have the _time_!

"Crystal, just tell me what room he's in." she sounded so tired and irritated that Crystal gave her a funny look, but obliged nonetheless.

"What crawled up your ass _this_ time?" The nosy woman continued, digging in the drawer to find the key.

"What did I just say?" Tina warned. Crystal rolled her eyes and flipped her jet black, shoulder length hair.

"Room 323." She boringly replied, handing the woman the key. Tina gave a curt nod and left without a word.

"JUST SO YOU KNOW, HE DOESN'T LOVE YOU!" Crystal yelled and grumbled in defeat as Tina continued to ignore her, and eventually disappeared behind the elevator doors. Crystal sighed irritably.

"When is she ever gonna learn? Hoes get _no _love." She shrugged uncaringly and awaited the next customer.

Meanwhile, in the elevator, Tina's heart beat arose again. She couldn't shake the uncomfortable feeling within. She felt the butterflies in her stomach and her hands seemed to have a mind of their own, seeing as they were shaking uncontrollably. She breathed a heavy sigh and closed her eyes, trying to calm herself again. Instincts told her to leave. However, she ignored said instincts.

As the elevator reached the third floor and the doors opened up, she began to rethink her decision, but was forced to go ahead anyways,

Since _he_ was standing right in the hallway…almost as if he expected her to come.

She gulped and walked out, giving him a wide grin. He must've bought it, sense he smiled back and walked over to her.

"Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Jackson," he began in a low seductive tone that got her riled up every time.

But for some reason, this time it was just…corny. She smirked at her thoughts, but made it appear as if she smirked at him.

"I think there's a task in the bedroom that needs to be done." He went on with that smirk, until he noticed what she had on. "Uh…baby, what do you have on?"

_A woman dresses comfortably and all of a sudden she looks stupid. _She thought, fighting the urge to say what was on her mind.

"I just wanted to get comfortable for a minute. Those heels were really killin' my ankles." She sounded as sweet as usual. The Korean man shrugged and smiled again.

"It doesn't even matter. It'll be on the floor _real_ soon." He whispered in her ear. She shivered as she felt his breath on her ear, and no, it didn't turn her on…it just made her nervous. How was she going to do this?

"I heard that." She said, playing it off with a smirk. "So let's get started."

The Korean grabbed her hand and led her into the room.

_Here goes nothin'. _Tina thought as the door slammed shut behind her.

* * *

Huey sighed as he closed the basement door behind him. He already knew Jazmine would trip, but he wasn't going to tell her why he'd been down there that long, not until a more appropriate time. Everyone was relieved at the moment, so he didn't want to spoil it. Aw, he's so thoughtful!

Not even a second into the living room, and everybody bombarded him with questions!

"Where you been, nigga!"

"That was a long time, Huey."

"Dude, you were takin' forever."

"What that bitch do to you? Nigga, you know I'll handle it!"

Riley, Jazmine, Caesar and Cindy couldn't help but ask all at one time.

Huey sighed again and walked to the kitchen to place Briana's plate in the sink. He walked back out, with all eyes on him…still.

"I'll tell ya'll later. As for now, just don't worry about it." He said and shrugged his shoulders.

"Hell naw, nigga tell us now!" Riley yelled. Huey glared at his little brother.

"No. I said I'll tell you later."

"Whateva, nigga." Riley responded, waving his hand. Huey shook his head and sat next to Jazmine. He felt her rest her head on his shoulder and he looked down at her to see her smiling and watching the television. He wanted to smile, but he didn't really feel like it. Instead, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and let her rest on his chest.

Jazmine closed her eyes for a second as she listened to his heart beat. It was so steady, so soothing. She could literally fall asleep in that position.

_Just let your soooouuuuul glooo, baby! Feelin' oh so silky smooth. Just let it shine throoouuughh, yeah! Just let your SOOOOUUUUUL GLOOO, Ooh! (Soul Glo)_

He felt her giggle against his chest, nearly making him melt inside. Man, only _she_ could make him feel that way.

"Ahh, look at that punk fool right there." Huey turned his head to Riley and saw him looking at the TV. Good, he thought Riley was talking about him for a second, so now Huey won't have to embarrass him.

"This nigga, _Darryl_." Marcus added with a light chuckle. "Straight bitch made."

"Hell yeah. How his corny high yellow ass gonna talk about Africans like that? Ignorance at its finest!" Caesar said aloud. Huey nodded in agreement.

"Took the words right out of my mouth."

"Aye nigga! You don't talk unless you gon' explain to us why you was downstairs all that long time!"

"Riley, shut up."

"What did I say, nigga?"

"Riley. Shut. Up." He warned him again. Riley responded by flipping the bird.

Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang. Ed groaned and stood right up.

"Who…the _fuck_…knockin' on my door!" He shouted unnecessarily. When he walked to the door and opened it, there stood a fine dark skinned teenager with a big grin. Ed stared at her frame a little.

"Damn girl. You thick as hell!"

Stacia frowned and elbowed him in his ribcage. He groaned in pain and fell to the ground.

"GOD-DAMNIT!"

"Way to greet, Ed." She said and walked right over him, ignoring his cries.

"Is that my baby?" She heard Riley ask and turned her head towards the living room. She almost squealed and ran directly to him and hopped onto his lap. She gave him a long kiss as everyone stared at the two in shock. How bold were _they_?

When they broke the kiss, they couldn't stop staring and smiling at each other. The room was silent, excluding Ed's faint cry for help.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"ARGH! CALL THE PARAME-….THE PAMAR-…GODDAMNIT! CALL THE FUCKIN' HOSPITAL!"

"…Well, hello to you, too, Stacia." Caesar uttered, breaking the silence. She looked at him and everyone else apologetically.

"Sorry guys, hey. I'm just so happy to see my boo!" She exclaimed with a huge smile as she leant her cheek down against Riley's. He smiled and blushed.

"You niggas make me sick." Lamaar joked.

"I agree." Huey chimed in. He felt Jazmine hit his chest and he looked down. "What?"

"How can you say that? That could be us."

"But it's not, so…" She hit him again, but he gently, yet firmly, grabbed her wrist and brought it back down on her leg.

"Stop it. I don't wanna end up like that damn couch." She laughed at that and sighed in comfort.

Stacia looked at the couple with a small smirk. "So I see you guys have gotten closer."

Ed walked in all of a sudden, gripping his side.

"You on that bullshit, Stacia!" He pointed to her with his free hand, making her roll her eyes.

"Anyways," She, along with everyone else, ignored Ed's complaints. "Ya'll all hugged up on each other now. It's so cute!" She cooed, almost making Huey sick. She smirked as she knew what she was about to say would cause quite the pandemonium. "Annnnddd…I heard that Huey called you 'baby', Jazmine."

Huey's eyes grew at Stacia's announcement, which only made her laugh. Damn, she had a big mouth sometimes! The couple blushed as everyone but Riley and Stacia stared at them in surprise.

"Shut up." Huey warned them before they said anything. Next thing coming was the laughter that filled the room. He groaned and slapped his free hand on his forehead.

"Annddd, they basically fucked on the couch!" Riley howled before everyone joined in with a mixture of surprise and amusement. Huey had enough. He reached around Jazmine and smacked Riley right in the head. "Damn, nigga!"

"I told you to shut the hell up!" Huey growled, only making Riley smirk again.

"Aye nigga, ain't nothin' to get upset about. It's 'bout time you got you some pussy. You olda then me, nigga!"

Huey rolled his eyes and held up his middle finger. Riley snorted.

"Aye gay nigga, don't point at me, point at ya girl. She the one you need to be fu-"

"Okaayyy!" Jazmine yelled, ignoring everyone's howling and unstoppable laughter.

"Oh God! Oh God! I can't breathe!" Caesar yelled, almost sliding off the couch. Stacia was all in Riley's shoulder, cracking up, Ed and Cindy were hunched over, Marcus was rolling from side to side, Lamaar was clutching his side, and Rummy was holding his stomach. Jazmine and Huey, blushing harshly, mentally shot daggers at everyone with the look they had. They were both embarrassed and irritated.

These people thought that them being together was a joke? How dare they?

"Y'know, I really like how you all seem to think our relationship is funny." Jazmine lowly spoke out, immediately halting everyone's laughter. Her voice sounded…so serious, like it had been before when she was dead set on killing the bitch, or at least severely torturing her, downstairs.

Cindy looked at her best friend and cocked her head, her long braid dangling over her shoulders.

"Jazzy, we don't think ya'll relationship is funny." She assured. "We're just shocked that Huey shows any other emotion other than anger."

At that statement, Jazmine's eyebrows narrowed at her friend. "What do you mean by _that_?"

Cindy blinked.

"Well…you want me to spell it out for you or somethin'?" She questioned with a little chuckle.

"That'd be nice."

Everyone blinked at Jazmine's curt reply.

Cindy narrowed her eyebrows as well and crossed her arms.

"Jazzy, you my girl, but you need to calm yo' ass down."

"Really?"

She responded automatically as everyone blinked again. Riley turned to Caesar with a smirk and mouthed 'Girl fight, nigga!'. Stacia caught it and lightly slapped his shoulder. He held his hands in defense, still smirking. Caesar wanted to laugh, but the tension in the room was too thick for that.

"Yeah, really. I know he yo' man, but you gotta admit that his ass is too cynical sometimes. That's why it's funny that he actually has other emotions."

Huey shook his head. Did she even acknowledge the fact that he was still there?

All at once, Jazmine released herself from Huey and stood up, looking like she was about to do something. Cindy raised an eyebrow and threw her head back, wishing Jazmine _would_ go there.

"Huey's _always_ showed other emotions aside from anger. He's caring, extremely caring! Why do you think he constantly informs us about information he feels is necessary for us to know? To prepare us! To protect us! You know why? Because he cares!"

Everyone was silent, even Huey. They all just stared at her as she continued.

"You weren't there when Huey and I tried to get his friend out of jail. His name was Shabazz K. Milton Burrow. They accused him of killing someone, even though the REAL killer left all the evidence at the crime scene." She paced back in forth, all eyes still on her. "They just had to get a black person didn't they?" She laughed bitterly. "Well, guess what? He was put on death row."

All but Huey and Riley gasped. Jazmine nodded.

"So when Huey heard the news, he called me over. We had a few meetings, trying to get Mr. Shabazz out of prison and eventually, Huey came up with a plan, which was pretty good by the way." She smiled at Huey, the fire in her eyes disappearing. "It would've worked, if it hadn't been for Ruckus' craziness. He had told everyone about 'White Jesus' and said that God hated blacks, or something like that."

"Oh yeah, I remember that." Riley muttered.

"Yo, word, I do too." Ed chimed in.

"Yeah," Jazmine nodded again. "Well, see, Mr. Freeman was going to take Huey to the prison, even though he didn't know what Huey was up to. He thought he was going to just support Mr. Shabazz at the candle lighting, but the mission was aborted, because Mr. Freeman and my dad went to Ruckus' service to stop the madness. So, Huey had no ride. It was a miracle though, because Huey's friend never died. He was still in prison for some time, and he eventually got out a few years ago."

Everyone leant forward in interest. She would've went on to tell them that the next day, Huey told her he prayed on the hill, but they didn't need to know all that.

"But that's faith right there, that's love. He was doing anything within his power to save his friend from being executed. You still think he's just heartless and angry?"

Everyone was still on mute, so she went on.

"Yes, Huey is an angry individual, but he has reason to be. Look what happened to his friend? Look at all the atrocities in the world that he's been exposed to? I'd be angry all the time too! And if you were as close a friend as I've been to him, you'd know about his life before Woodcrest and you'd understand why he acts the way he does. So for you to laugh and joke because he's displaying different emotions other than anger is ridiculous! He has a heart for God's sake. He's not emotionless. He _is_ a sane human being, and honestly, each and every one of you, though you may not notice, are blessed to have him in your lives. I know I am."

With that lecture/story, she sat down, leaving everyone speechless. Even Huey didn't know what to say. She stuck up for him, even though he felt it wasn't necessary. Right then and there, he was sure that she was the one. She was the type of woman who would always be there for him. He didn't have to worry about her breaking his heart. She was his best friend, his right hand, his woman.

And at that moment, he _knew_ he loved her.

He just had to express it to her.

He remained silent, as everyone eventually watched the movie again, awkwardly.

* * *

Robert Jebediah Freeman let out a long groan as he groggily sat up.

"Where am I?" he uttered, placing a hand on top of his head. It took him a minute to register that he was in his downstairs bathroom. Then it all came flooding back.

"Oh yeah! That damn, hissing sound." He spoke to himself, lifting off the ground. He didn't even dwell on the past, he just walked into the kitchen, limping a bit, and got him some orange juice.

"All I know is them little niggas better hurry up and fix my wall!"

* * *

They kissed feverishly, stripping down to their under garments. They fell onto the bed, the woman on top and continued kissing until the woman had enough.

"Okay, Jin, we need to talk." Her voice was soft, so soft that the man almost didn't hear her.

Almost.

He smirked almost pervertedly and grabbed her behind. "I'm listening."

That did it.

The woman grabbed his hand and snatched it off of her, causing a look of bewilderment to come across his face. His expression remained the same as she stood up and started getting dressed.

"What's the problem?" He nearly yelled, sitting up on the bed. The woman seemed to be in a rush.

"Jin, I'm sorry. We can't do this anymore." Her voice was so shaky. Jin shook his head, still not believing this.

"Wh-what do you mean…we can't do this anymore, Tina? We've been doing it all this long time and now you want to quit?" His voice rose and Tina grew frightened.

"No-no, I-I don't…I'm sorry!" She apologized as he groaned and fell backwards onto the bed. "Look, he's getting curious and…and, I miss him-"

"I should've known." Jin cut her off, and laughed bitterly. She froze on the spot. Something told her to just get the hell out of there and not listen to whatever he was babbling about, but she was too scared to move.

"I should've known," he repeated, getting up. "The married women always do this."

He slowly inched closer and closer to her, the fire in his eyes never dying. She stayed in the same spot, praying to God that she'd gain enough courage to just…_leave_.

He approached her, and slowly circled around her, like the crazy people in the movies do, as he continued to speak.

"They feel the fire in their relationship dimming…and they want a stress reliever. They want a good fuck every now and then, am I right?" She didn't answer; she just stood motionless, tears springing out of her eyes. She was beyond terrified, now. "They want to find another married man who needs a good fuck, and they both fuck the living daylights out of each other…then," He shook his head and did that bitter laugh again. "Then, the man they fuck gets them caught by the man's wife and daughter. So after the wife divorces the husband, he feels relieved. He leaves his family for the WHORE," She flinched as he shouted that word. "And she _still_ wants to fuck him over? Oh no, babe. You got it all wrong."

It was too quick to catch. From behind, Jin grabbed Tina by the throat and choked her, almost to death. Still in his grasp, he turned her around to face him. The look on his face was…monstrous! His nose flared and his eyes were practically burning holes into hers. As he continued to strangle her, her vision was getting blurrier.

"I LOVED YOU! I FUCKING LOVED YOUR STUPID ASS AND YOU WANT TO LEAVE ME FOR THAT DECREPIT NEGRO? BITCH!"

He fiercely threw her onto the bed. She gave a long gasp, trying to catch her breath, and all of a sudden he landed his big ass right on top of her stomach. She gasped again, in pain this time and the tears just didn't stop. He turned around and sprawled his body all over hers. He stared into her eyes with a smirk. She looked back at him with the most pathetic look he'd ever seen. His smile grew and he kissed her. Tina nearly threw up once he did so. It was then that she hated him. She glared at him angrily.

When he noticed her sad eyes turn into ones of stone, he frowned and slapped her across her face, making her squeal.

"You're mine now, bitch!" He growled and aggressively pulled her shirt over her head and ripped her bra off. The look in her eyes this time was a look of horror, for she knew what he was about to do to her. Oh man, she knew she should've went with her gut!

_God, help me! I'm sorry, Lord! Please!_

She continued to cry out loud as the man ripped off the rest of her clothes one by one.

* * *

Hmm, something was wrong. He could feel it in the pit of his stomach. Something was terribly wrong. He just didn't know what.

Tina's been gone a long time, and Stacia hasn't been seen since yesterday morning. She's probably fine though, she's always with her friends, ignoring her parents and her responsibilities.

He sighed. He wished his relationship with his daughter wasn't so distant. He'd be devastated if something happened to her and he didn't know about it until it was too late. He wished he would've known why she called him the other day. His phone was in the car while he was at his job, so he didn't retrieve it until his shift was over. He would've called her back, but she was already home, and when she was home, she was sleep. He didn't want to bother her.

Excuses, excuses.

He shook his head and turned off the television. It was almost 5'o clock and there was no sight of his family anywhere.

_Tina._

He started to feel a headache coming on at the mention of her name. He knew. He knew everything. He checked through her phone one time and saw the naked pictures, the texts, and that one significant number that was on speed dial. He should've confronted her about it earlier, but he had faith that their relationship would soon fall into place.

But he wasn't sure how much of this he could take.

He groaned irritably and stood up. He slipped on his white Nike's and threw on his dark grey pea coat.

He needed to go for a walk.

* * *

"I'm ready to go home, so what the fuck we gon' do?" Riley shouted.

Coming to America went off a few hours ago and everyone watched MTV Jams…bored out of their minds.

"Yeah, me too. We should just turn her in already." Caesar suggested tiredly. Everyone still needed their rest. They didn't do it enough.

Everyone murmured in agreement.

"Wait." Huey interjected. The rest of them snapped their heads in his direction with raised brows.

"What? I'm tired, Huey." Jazmine whined, leaning on him.

"Yeah me too. I mean, what the hell you tellin' us to wait fo'?" Cindy added.

Huey sighed. It was about that time. He had to tell them.

"…What if I said that…me and Briana…talked…"

Jazmine quickly lifted herself up and glared at him, along with everyone else.

"…What the _hell_ is that supposed to mean?" He felt a pang in his chest at her Arctic reply. He sighed again. Why beat around the bush?

"Alright, I'll just go right ahead and say it." They all leant in, anticipated. "After we all went upstairs the first time and I went back down to check her wound, she was crying and looking pathetic. At first I thought she was just trying to trick me, but then she started talking about her family problems and she looked horrible. I still ain't trust her, but something told me she wasn't lying."

The room fell silent, so he continued.

"So…I told her about my childhood problems and hit her with a Khalil Gibran quote. I basically told her not to let her personal problems take control of her, because then she'd continue to do what she was doing to us. So that left her speechless for a while."

"Ohhhh, so that's why she stopped gettin' smart with me when I went down there. Matter of fact, she ain't say shit." Caesar smirked as Huey nodded.

"So what you sayin', she got a change of heart?" Rummy asked. Huey nodded again.

"Well I think she's full of it." Jazmine said with a shrug. "I mean, c'mon Huey, she likes you. She wants you. She could be manipulating you."

Huey gave her a deadpanned look.

"Jazmine, I'm not stupid. I'm cannot be easily deceived."

Jazmine shook her head. "Whatever." Huey rolled his as well. "So, I know that's not all because you stayed down there long last time."

Huey sighed once again.

"I was getting to that."

"Well, can we go home? I don't think we needed here." Marcus asked impatiently. "Plus, I'm tryna see my girl!"

"Nigga, how you leavin'? Huey brought us here." Lamaar retorted. Marcus sucked his teeth in realization.

"Damn."

"Right…anyways," Huey went on. "I told her we weren't turning her in bec-"

"WHAT!" Everyone exclaimed.

"Aw hell! Huey, nigga I understand the bitch got heart, but there ain't no excuse for what she did!"

"Riley, will you shut up and let me finish?"

Riley glared at his big brother.

"Fine, but you better have a good excuse, nigga. That bitch ain't gettin' off easy!"

Huey rolled his eyes.

"Okay, well I told her we weren't turning her in because we'd get in trouble too. We kidnapped her and kept her in a basement. That's not a good look."

Everybody murmured 'yeah, he got a point' and 'damn, he right'.

"And she insisted on turning herself in."

They all looked at him like _he_ was the crazy one.

"I know, I looked at her the same way. But she said if she gets off free, she'd feel guilty knowing she did what she did without a consequence. I, for one, don't think she realizes everything she's done, because she'd get a lot of prison time; attempted murder, more than once, threats and harassment." He shrugged. "But hey, she gotta do what she gotta do."

"Damn." Riley muttered. "Did she trade her craziness with infinite knowledge or somethin'?"

Huey snorted and smirked. "I said the same thing."

"Well…it's clear that she's out of her mind." Jazmine started as Huey rolled his eyes. "…but, I respect her decision…I still don't like her…but I respect her finally acting like a grown up."

Stacia nodded. "Man, I missed everything. I can't believe Jazmine called her a bitch." She laughed as everyone but Huey joined in.

They all started talking and eventually went downstairs to the basement to release the prisoner.

* * *

When Anton Jackson finally arrived back home after his long walk, he found that his car was in the driveway. Good, his wife was home and they needed to talk.

He opened the door, expecting her to shout out 'Hey honey,' or 'Hey, where were you?'. Instead , he was greeted with silence.

A rather uncomfortable silence.

"Hmm." He hummed. Something was eerily wrong. "Tina!" He yelled. He was once again greeted with silence. He then started to get angry. If she had the audacity to bring some nigga into their home, hell was going to officially break loose.

He marched up the stairs. "Tina! Tina!" He continued calling her, earning no response. That just made him angrier.

He was about to explode. He really was.

He reached the first step and almost sprinted to his door. He flung the door open to find his wife on the floor, curled into a ball.

His anger was quickly replaced with guilt. He didn't know why he felt so guilty, but he did. His wife looked horrible. Her face was all bruised, her clothes were ripped, she was shaking all over and she was crying.

"Baby!" He cried as he knelt down. "Baby, what happened?"

'_If you tell anyone what happened, you can bet your ass will be done for.' _She thought back to what Jin said to her. She was terrified…scarred for life. She wasn't about to get attacked again. She couldn't take it.

She didn't respond, she just kept crying. Damn, what _did_ happen?

He tried to pick her up, but she cried out in pain. He jumped back, afraid to break her.

"Baby, what is it?"

"My…side…" She responded hoarsely.

Her side?

He didn't know what she meant.

"Your side?" he asked in a calm voice. She then began whimpering and soon her crying turned into low wailing.

He tried hushing her and calming her down, but to no avail. Then, the light bulb went off. Her side was bothering her.

He cautiously lifted up her shirt, afraid to hurt her any further and found a deep gash there. His eyes widened in horror.

"Damnit!" He shouted in frustration, slamming his fist against the hardwood floor. Who did this to her? Was she jumped? Was she held at gunpoint? Were they robbed while he was away? Was she personally attacked?

Wait.

Anton thought for a second, and his frustration grew. Hell no._ That_…couldn't have happened.

Because if what he was thinking was what really happened, then he was going to have to kill somebody.

He wanted to ask her more questions, but he was more concerned about her health and safety. He lifted her up, apologized numerous times before heading out.

The ambulance weren't going to get there on time, so he had to go to them.

* * *

:O! Damn.

All I gotta say is...review please. :)


	20. Oh So Close

Ayooooo! I'm back with another one!

And trust me, I'm working on A Day To Remember. I just got stuck, but it's all coming together. Soon my friends, soon. Be patient!

Oh and I have another story comin' soon! It's a oneshot and it's...probably gonna be rated M :O! Probably! We'll see lol

As for now, enjoy this chap-

Oh, wait. Hehe.

Acknowledgements!

Thanks to the RODs Miss Ace Thank You, Cruella De 'Chelle, MissG2020 & jayjai107! Also to Rivi2012, keyks554 and those who favorited! Love love love ya'll!

Thanks for the love guys!

And trust me, there will be more Huey/Jaz moments soon. Not really too much of that in this chapter, though lol. Just, y'know...drama.

DISCLAIMER: DON'T OWN IT!

Oh, and this is off topic, but have you all heard Jay-Z & Kanye's new album? FIIRREEE! I'm tellin' you, that shit is too raw! I don't even listen to them niggas anymore because y'know, i heard some stuff LOL, but I heard Otis last week, so I said, "Huh, this song pretty hot." I downloaded the album off Frostwire (for some reason it's a new thing where you could download rare songs and shit. I like it lol) and I immediately fell in love with ALMOST every song! I was so mad because I didn't feel like I should listen to them, but it was just too hot to ignore! lol. I've been bumpin' that shit for the past three days, me and my brother blastin' that in the car lol.

It's hot! But yeah, back to the story lol

* * *

CHAPTER 20: OH SO CLOSE

"Aye, whenever ya'll need anything else, don't hesitate to call a nigga."

"Yeah, because that worked out so perfectly before." Huey rolled his eyes. "But thanks anyways."

Ed stared at him for a while, causing his eyebrow to rise.

"Y'know…I never realized it befo', but you one depressing ass mu'fucka." He noted. Huey didn't reply, he just turned around to go to his vehicle parked in the driveway.

As of right now, the crew, Lamaar, Marcus and Briana were leaving Ed's. Rummy was in the house cleaning up the mess and getting ready to head home himself.

When Huey finally reached everyone in the driveway, he noticed them standing around awkwardly while Briana stood about six feet away from them. He wanted to laugh, but held it back. They'd never let her live this down.

"Okay, so who's going with who?" He asked, breaking the silence. They all looked at him. "I gotta take Briana to the police station."

"I'm ridin' with Stacia." Riley replied with annoyance in his tone. "You know how I feel, plus I'm tryna go home now."

"I'm going with you." Jazmine said.

"Stacia." Was all Cindy said. "I gotta get home too."

"You." Caesar added.

"I guess I'll go with Stacia." Marcus said as Lamaar nodded.

"Good. Let's go." He was in a hurry to get home. He needed to take a nice, hot shower and get some more rest, as did everyone else.

Just then, Stacia's phone rang. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Who could be calling her? When she looked to see who it was she frowned hard.

_Dad_.

"What the hell is he calling me for?"

"Who?" Riley asked, starting to get jealous at the mention of the word 'he'.

"My dad." She responded in annoyance, rolling her grey orbs.

Riley shrugged. "Just answer it." Stacia looked at him as if he was crazy.

"Uhh, no?" She let it ring and opened the door to her car. Riley looked over to Cindy who just shrugged and hopped in the backseat. Marcus and Lamaar were already in the back, so Lamaar was forced to sit in the middle. Ugh! He hated that!

Riley sighed as he sat on the passenger side. He couldn't help but think that maybe Stacia should've answered that call. If her _dad _called her, then it must've been something serious.

Meanwhile, in Huey's car, Jazmine sat on the passenger side while Caesar and Briana sat in the back. Caesar was behind Huey while Briana sat behind Jazmine. All, but Huey, stared out the window.

The car ride was silent. It was weird. The girl that caused everything was riding with them as if she was being dropped off at home. And she was so close. Even though Huey told them she changed, they were still skeptical.

It was so uncomfortably silent, and Jazmine couldn't take it anymore. She didn't want to spark up a conversation, so she turned up the radio and switched to her favorite station; 95.5 WFRK The Freak. Lil Wayne's 'How to Love' was on.

"Ooohh, that's my shit." Caesar suddenly announced aloud.

"Really?" Huey asked as he came to a stop light. "Damn."

"Hell yeah. Nigga, you don't like it?"

Huey shrugged. "It's okay, but all that singin' gets annoying."

Caesar shrugged too. "Well, I like it. And he's actually talkin' about something other than money, cars, clothes, or hoes."

"…But…he_ is_ talking about a ho." Huey corrected him.

Caesar stayed quiet for a minute. "…Yeah, but he's talkin' about how she could've done better with her life if she worked on her self-esteem issues. He's just tellin' her how she turned out to be."

Huey nodded. "You got me there." Even though he knew all of that.

"You like arguing, don't you Huey?" Jazmine inquired playfully, almost making Briana roll her eyes. She may be changing, but she still didn't like Jazmine. The girl busted her head with a gat. The hell?

Although she deserved it.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He said with a smirk as the light turned green. Jazmine just giggled as Caesar began singing the lyrics.

"For a second you were here. Why you over there? It's hard not to stare."

"The way you movin' your body like you never had a love." Jazmine joined in with Caesar. He smiled and went on with her.

"Had a love."

Then they started to get loud.

"Oh, you had a lot of dreams that transformed to visions. The fact that you saw the world affected all your decisions, but it wasn't your fault. Wasn't in your intentions to be the one here, talkin' to me. Blahhhh, listenin' but,"

They didn't know all the lyrics, which caused Huey to laugh a bit. Briana smirked, but didn't want to overstep her boundaries, so she stayed quiet.

They got even louder!

"BUT I ADMIRE POPPIN' BOTTLES & DIPPIN', JUST AS MUCH AS YOU ADMIRE BARTENDIN' AND STRIPPIN', BABY!"

Jazmine was so into it, she was swaying left to right in the funniest way. Caesar was in the back moving his right arm in the air and bopping his head.

"SO DON'T BE MAD, NOBODY ELSE TRIPPIN'! I'VE SEEN A LOT OF CROOKS AND THEM CROOKS STILL CROOKS!"

As they continued to sing rather obnoxiously, Huey turned into the Aberdeen Police Department on N. Parkway Boulevard. He swung the car around to the front of the large building and put the car in park.

"Well, we're here." He said, turning around to the soon-to-be prisoner. "You sure you wanna go through with this?"

Briana nodded, the both of them ignoring the loud singing.

"You know you'd be in the system for a long time,"

She nodded again.

"…it could drive you insane again."

"Huey, I'm going." She finally found her voice, making the two stop singing. Huey shrugged and sighed.

"Alright, since your mind is made up, get out." He simply said and turned around in his seat, waiting to leave. She frowned a little at his forwardness, but opened the door nonetheless. She knew he wasn't trying to be rude. He did try to warn her.

She hopped out and prepared to close the door, but she had to get something off her chest.

"Jazmine…Caesar…I know you don't like me, why would you?" They looked at her with blank looks. "But…sorry." She ended timidly and closed the door shut before hearing what any of them had to say. She walked towards the building and sighed heavily. This was it. She had to call her mom and her cousin before she went through with this though. She knew they'd freak out, but she had to do it.

* * *

"Where is that girl? Always leavin' unexpectedly." Briana's mother ranted as she poured the macaroni shells in the boiling water on the stove. It's not that she didn't care enough to find out where her daughter was, but she just assumed she was alright, since nothing bad has happened to her so far.

Right when she was about to pull the plastic off of the pork chops, the home phone rang.

She groaned. "Who is it now?" She washed her hands hurriedly and semi-dried them with the hand towel. She walked over to the phone and pressed the 'talk' button.

"Hello?"

"_Ma_."

"Briana? Girl where have you been? You know, I might want to spend some time with my own daughter from time to time."

That didn't make the girl feel any better. It actually made her feel worse.

"_Ma…I'm sorry, we can hang out later…much later_," She muttered the last part, catching her mom off guard.

"Later? What is that supposed to mean?" She inquisitively questioned. She didn't like the sound of that.

Briana sighed, almost crying. This was harder than she thought.

"_Ma…Ma, I'm…going to be gone a while_." She rephrased it. She heard her mom gasp.

"Sweetie, are you running away? No, please don't! Look, I'm sorry if I'm too busy sometimes, but I still love you and I actually wanted to hang out with you today! Just don't leave me! You're all I have left!" Her mother's voice cracked, so she knew she was crying. Damnit! This would've went so much better if she hadn't decided to let her family know where she was.

"_Ma, I'm not mad at you at all. It's not you, it's me. I'm…trying to find myself. Trust me, I'll be fine. I have plenty of people to back me up. Remember, I love you. I'm not running away because of you. I'll go to school in…wherever I'm going and I'll get my diploma. I'll show it to you later…much later, but I've got to go_."

She couldn't do it. She couldn't tell her mother the truth. If she told her mother she was going to be imprisoned, she might never speak to her again and that'd be the worst feeling in the world. She didn't even want to tell her cousin, because she knew he'd crack and tell her mom, so as far as they knew, she was somewhere out there in the world trying to do right on her own.

"But Briana, this is your senior year!"

"…_I know, Ma. I know, but I gotta do this_."

Her mother couldn't speak for awhile. She was starting to forget about the food. All she wanted was her daughter back home, but she just thought that her daughter was going to be fine. She grew up into a fine young lady.

Or so she thought.

"…Honey…just promise me you'll be alright."

Briana felt a few tears running down her cheeks. This was hard as hell.

"_I promise. I love you_."

"I love you too."

Without another second to waste, they both hung up at the same time.

Briana's mother nearly collapsed on the floor, but caught herself, resting her arms on the countertop. This was so unexpected.

* * *

Briana let out a heavy, shaky sigh and wiped the tears from her eyes. She neared closer and closer and finally pulled back the door.

She had no time to turn back now.

She walked over to the desk and was greeted with a heavy set white guy with a deep frown.

"Yeah, what is it?"

Briana rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm here to turn in a Briana Taylor." She announced. The fat white guy stuffed a glazed donut in his mouth, and quickly gulped it down, shocking Briana. This dude just ate it in a matter of seconds!

"Alright, where is she?" He asked, reaching for his diet Coke.

Really? A _diet_ Coke?

Briana sighed before answering. "You're talking to her."

* * *

"Stacia, just answer the damn phone! He called twice already!"

"Riley, stay out of this!" She almost whined as she turned a corner.

"Out of what?" Riley got louder. This was stupid, neglecting her parents' call. Shit, at least she _had_ parents. "Your dad is calling…your DAD is calling! That almost never happens! Don't you think you need to see what the hell he wants? It could be an emergency!"

Marcus and Lamaar were dropped off first and now they were on their way to drop off Cindy, who was awkwardly sitting in the back as the couple continued to argue.

"Riley! I don't wanna talk to him! We barely even speak at home!"

"Well work on that!" He shut her up as he got even louder. He sighed hard. "I mean, damn, the least you could do is answer the damn phone! At least you actually got parents! Hell, I haven't had one since before pre-k, and here you are ignoring the very people in your life you're so privileged to have!"

That _really_ shut her up.

Riley scoffed and shook his head as the phone stopped ringing. He was still upset with his girlfriend's stubbornness, but his voice wasn't as loud or harsh.

"I would give anything in the world to have my parents back in my life. I don't even remember how they sound or what they look like in person. I can't even recall not having my Granddad living with us. I can't recall Huey being as happy as I've seen him in our childhood pictures before my parents died."

Nothing.

Riley sighed again. "Look, just call him back. It's most likely important."

Stacia didn't say a thing and for a while, she was unresponsive, but reluctantly she reached for her phone as she came to a stop sign. She was about to punch in the numbers but the phone rang again. She sighed and pressed the green button.

"Hello?" She plainly answered.

"_Stacia! Why don't you answer your phone?_" Her father shouted on the other side. Stacia's jaw dropped in disbelief.

"Are you really _fussing _with me right now? You have no ri-"

"_Stacia! Who do you think you talkin' to? Just because you're growing up don't mean you're grown! You better watch your mouth!_"

Stacia rolled her eyes.

"Dad, why are you calling me?" Her voice slightly raised in irritation. If he called her to argue, then she was going to just hang up on him.

"_Your mother's in the hospital_." He growled. Not at her, but he was just angry with the entire situation.

That much made her heart drop. She heard someone beep their horn behind her, but she ignored it.

"F-for what?" She asked in a soft voice.

He sighed before answering. "_She was attacked and she wouldn't tell me who did it_."

"Oh God!" Stacia's froze. Riley and Cindy noticed as she stopped talking, and driving.

"Baby, what is it?" Riley asked, but she didn't respond.

"Stacia, what's up girl?" Cindy finally spoke up with concern in her voice.

She still didn't say anything. Riley studied her facial expression and continued to stare at her. It wasn't until the tears fell that he began to panic.

"Okay, I'll just take that from you." He referred to the phone and easily took it out of her hands. The car behind them hurriedly drove around them, almost colliding with another car in the intersection. Dumbass.

"Hey Mr. Jackson, what's up?"

"…_Who is this_?"

Riley's eyebrow arose. "Riley."

Mr. Jackson frowned. It's not like he didn't like the boy, but he felt as if he was a part of the reason his daughter was so distant. Shoot, he probably convinced her to ignore his calls.

"_Oh, hey boy_."

"What's wrong? Stacia's cryin' right now and I'm kinda worried." Riley admitted.

Anton sighed again. "_Mrs. Jackson's in the hospital. She was attacked_."

Riley's eyebrows upturned in sympathy. "Oh dang. I'm sorry about that, sir."

Anton shook his head and smirked a bit. "Aint no need to apologize boy. It ain't your fault…is it?"

Riley shook his head as if the man could see him. "No sir. I would never attack a woman. That's a bi-uhh, a punk move." Cindy shook her head in the back and smirked at Riley's 'almost' slipup. She didn't know what was going on, but she had a feeling she was about to find out.

"That's good to hear. Could you please tell my daughter to come by?"

"No problem, sir. Where to?"

"Woodcrest General Hospital."

"Oh I know where that is. Cindy was just admitted there a few days ago."

Mr. Jackson grew silent for a second and Riley mentally slapped his forehead as he remembered that Stacia's parents didn't know that.

"…Alright son. Tell her to call me when she gets here and I'll tell her where I am."

"Aiight."

"And Riley…be good to my baby girl."

"I love her too much to hurt her, sir."

Mr. Jackson smiled at that. "Good to hear son."

And with that, he hung up along with Riley.

"Damn." Riley uttered before turning to Stacia and wiping away her tears. "Baby, you think you can drive to Woodcrest General?"

"Woodcrest General? What happened?" Cindy nearly shouted. Riley shushed her.

"Her mom's in the hospital. Someone attacked her."

"Damn." Cindy said. "Sorry girl."

Stacia didn't say anything and remained unmoved. Riley shook his head and put the car in park. Stacia was in no condition to drive.

"Baby, I'll drive up there, okay?" She was still speechless as more tears flowed down her cheeks.

Riley wasted no time opening his passenger door and walking over to her side. He opened her door and carefully pulled her out. She immediately collapsed in his arms and cried.

"Riley, I'm sorry. I should've listened to you! I don't wanna ignore my parents anymore!"

Riley shushed her and stroked her hair lovingly as they embraced. Cindy was patiently waiting and watching in the backseat.

"Baby, it's okay. Right now we need to get to the hospital. I'll take us up there okay?"

Stacia lifted her head out of his shoulder and looked at him.

"B-but, you don't have a license."

"I got a permit."

"…you could get cau-"

"Baby, don't worry about it. It's an emergency. If we _are_ stopped for whatever reason, I'll just tell them that."

Stacia looked at him for a second before laying a sweet kiss on his lips.

"I love you so much."

"I love you too, babe."

"I love ya'll too, but if ya'll wanna see her and avoid gettin' hit, we gotta go." Cindy announced, officially ruining the moment. Oh well, she was right by the way.

Riley hopped in the car as Stacia ran over to her side and got in. Luckily for them, no cars were behind them. Riley turned around to face Cindy.

"Aye, you tryna go home?"

Cindy nodded. "Yeah, I'll stop by later with Jaz and Huey. I gotta shower though."

Riley nodded and turned around in his seat. He put the car in drive and sped away.

* * *

"Aiight man, I'll see you tomorrow." Caesar told his best friend, giving him dap. Since Huey and Jazmine were in the front and not even thinking about getting out, he sweetly shook Jazmine's hand and said his goodbye to her.

As soon as Huey was sure he could get into his house, he drove off. Jazmine sighed and leant her head back on the headrest.

"Long day." She said as she closed her eyes.

"Yeah. I just hope I actually get some sleep with that big ass hole in my room."

Jazmine giggled a little. "Y'know, I almost forgot about that."

Huey glanced at her with a small smile as he noticed her starting to drift off.

"Tired?" He asked knowingly. Jazmine responded with a yawn.

"Mm hmm."

She sounded tired, too. He wanted to talk to her, but since she was about to fall asleep on him, it could wait.

"Okay, well go to sleep. We'll be home soon." He instructed as he turned the music almost all the way down.

Jazmine opened her droopy emerald orbs and smiled at her boyfriend. Unexpectedly, she reached over and kissed his cheek. He was so caught off guard by it that he started speeding up a little.

"You're so sweet." She complimented him in a sleepy, raspy tone, not realizing what she did to him.

She reached down to adjust the button on the side of her seat and reclined. In a matter of minutes, she was out like a light. Huey glanced at her once more, taking in her beauty; the way her long lashes rested on her cheeks, the shape of her perfect lips, the way her red curly locks fell over on her shoulders. He realized he couldn't do it for long though. He had to focus on the road ahead.

About thirty minutes later, he turned onto Timid Deer Lane. Words couldn't explain how much of a relief it was to finally be home. Just thinking about all the crazy shit that went down was giving him a massive migraine.

As he finally arrived to his destination, he drove up and parked right behind Dorothy. He looked over to Jazmine and gently caressed her shoulder, waking her up.

"We're home."

Jazmine's eyelids fluttered open as she let out another yawn.

"Finally." She lazily added as she lifted the seat up.

Huey turned the car off and took the key out. He looked Jazmine's way again and noticed her staring at him. He smirked as he caught her blushing.

"You…wanna get out?"

She smiled shyly as she opened the passenger side door. Huey shrugged and did the same thing.

"I guess I'll be going home now."

"Yep."

They just stood there awkwardly, waiting for the other one to say something, or do something. Huey looked towards the garage as Jazmine looked towards her house.

"Want me to walk you?" He offered, breaking the silence. Jazmine looked his way and smiled before running up to him and kissing him on the lips.

More than once might I add.

When she pulled away, Huey looked at her with a mild-shocked expression. This woman was full of surprises.

"W-what was that for?" He stammered. Jazmine just giggled.

"For being the best boyfriend in the world." She answered lovingly. Huey felt his insides melt at her…sweetness.

"Yeah…well I'll take you home anyways." He said, totally affected by her kisses. Jazmine giggled again as she was aware of it.

He'll tell her what's on his mind later.

* * *

The elevators slid open, allowing Mr. Jin Taylor out. He was looking pretty sharp. He had an all black dress suit on with a white dress shirt underneath it and a black tie.

All that black just matched his personality didn't it?

As he briskly walked past the front desk, he was stopped by the nosy woman behind it.

"Ahem," She got his attention. He turned around with an annoyed expression.

"What is it, Crystal?"

She wasn't in the least bit intimidated by his cold, harsh tone. She actually matched it pretty well.

"Don't 'What is it, Crystal,' me, Mr. Taylor!" She scolded, standing up out of her seat. He jerked his head back at her unprofessionalism. She _was_ in a workplace by the way.

"Crystal, need I remind you that you're _working_? Meaning, you should talk to your customers with _respect_? Meaning, if you don't fix that, one customer in particular could get you _fired_?"

The way he emphasized every last word of each sentence really started to piss her off. This asshole had the _nerve_? Oh, but she had something for _that_ ass.

"Are you threatening me?" She asked disbelievingly. He just shrugged without a care and a smug smirk.

"Hey, call it what you want." He responded, making her scowl deeply at him. "And you shouldn't do that to your face. You're far too pretty for th-"

"What happened with Mrs. Jackson?" She inquired, cutting him off. She folded her arms and stared at him, awaiting a reply. As he stood still, unmoved, speechless, she knew she had him and a tiny smirk plastered on her face.

"Yeah, I saw her come down here about an hour ago." She continued, sitting back down and still looking straight at him. "She was limping, which wasn't a surprise." She rolled her eyes. "But what really got me was how horrible her face looked…how she kept gripping her side, and how torn up her clothes were." That last sentence was so strongly emphasized that Taylor started feeling weird. He didn't have to stand around for this!

"Yeah, well I have no idea. I haven't seen her since over an hour ago, so yeah…"

"Aha! A damn lie! She wasn't even up there that long before she came back down here!" She jolted out of her seat again and pointed an accused finger at him.

"Aye now! I don't know what happened! Maybe she was jumped in the hallway or something! They probably beat her up when she left me and stabbed her in the side! That's probably how the gash got there!" His hands were up, defensively, but that's when he realized his mistake.

His big, big mistake.

Crystal's eyes widened in shock and anger. How could this trifling nigga do that to a female. A _female_ though?

"I never said there was a gash on her side. I _said_ she was_ holding_ her side." She responded darkly. Damn, who the hell did he think he was? She may not have been too fond of the woman, but she always hated for a woman to be treated like that! Especially if she had a strong, protective man at home waiting for her.

He was going to try another excuse, she could see it in his eyes, but all of a sudden…they darkened. And though she didn't like to admit it…it was kind of scary.

Kind of.

"Okay. Alright, you got me." His hands were still up as he walked closer and closer to the service desk. Just in case he didn't try anything, Crystal felt underneath the desk for her protective handgun. She didn't even know what kind it was…she didn't know how to use it, but she knew she couldn't miss. He was close as hell.

"I did it. But she was the one going crazy."

Her scowl got deeper, if that was even possible.

"No excuse."

Jin sighed hard. "C'mon Crystal. You gotta believe me."

"Nigga, I don't trust you. How the hell am I supposed to believe a woman beater?" She yelled, gripping the gat tighter. Any sudden movements and his fucking head was getting blown off.

Just for back up, she pressed a red button at the side of her desk with her free hand.

Jin's demeanor suddenly changed from eerily calm to furiously pissed.

"Alright bitch! I tried being nice, but I guess that just isn't your forte' is it?" He shouted maniacally. Crystal gritted her teeth and prepared to light this nigga up.

He reached in his back pocket to get something out, but Crystal wasn't having it. She quickly lifted the weapon up and pointed it right at his throat, facing it upwards. Both hands were gripped tightly around it. She couldn't let a man like this walk out and live their lives knowing they gave woman beat downs. It was either death or prison for him.

"I swear to God, if you don't control that fuckin' anger problem of yours you _will_ get dealt with." She threatened…no, promised. Her eyes were so full of hate. She despised men like this. She knew how it felt to be a battered woman. She's had men batter her almost all of her life. She even resulted into becoming a prostitute on the streets and a stripper around her mid-twenties. She even had a nickname, like every other stripper did.

Cristal. Yep, named after liquor.

She remembered one gentleman, one very mature gentleman, who treated her like a Queen. He made her feel special. He made her feel pretty and worth something. But he was too damn oblivious, and she was too deceiving. She didn't like what she did to him, or how she did it, but she's been living that way since as long as she could remember.

You see, he was a man of wealth, in her eyes by the way. He actually lived on a fixed income, but he had money, and she liked that. He was so in love with her that she took advantage of him. She persuaded him into taking her on multiple shopping sprees, and she ate like a freaking black hole. His grandsons didn't like her much because of those reasons, because of her laziness and because of the fact that she was who she was.

A lazy hoe.

And it didn't take until her pimp…excuse me, _ex_-pimp, found her and took her back that he found out she was a prostitute.

Since then, she wanted to change, but it was hard. It wasn't until her pimp was killed in a drive by that she changed completely. She went to college and got her shit together. She changed her lifestyle, her train of thought, and even her hair color. Instead of that Mariah Carey shit, she dyed her hair jet black and cut it into a bob. It actually fit her.

Now back to the situation at hand.

Jin sucked his teeth, thinking she was bluffing. "You better put that shit away and stop playing."

Once he heard a click, he shut up. Okay, so maybe she wasn't bluffing.

"Nigga, do I look like I'm playin'?" She asked in a deathly tone. Shit! She was serious!

They stayed like that for a while until there was a voice heard through a megaphone outside.

"Ma'am, could you please put down the weapon?" He half-demanded/ half-pleaded. Crystal sighed heavily and pointed the gun in the air, letting the bullet fly out.

"Damnit!" Jin yelled, dropping to the ground. This woman was crazy.

She didn't mean to shoot it, but she had to shoot somewhere. She already pulled the trigger.

Soon, the police rushed in with their weapons pointed at her.

"Ma'am, please drop the weapon! Now!" One of them yelled. Panicking, she dropped it.

On the wrong side.

Jin heard a loud clunk around him and looked up to see Crystal's gun there. He smiled evilly and slyly tucked it in his jacket.

"Trust me officers, it's not me! It's him!" She pointed to Jin as the cops eyed her skeptically. "For real! He beat up on a woman earlier! That's why I called you! And he threatened me!"

The cops looked at her, looked down at Jin on the floor, and looked back up at her.

"Right."

She tried to explain it to them, but they didn't believe her. One of them walked behind her and slapped handcuffs around her wrists. She gasped as she felt them.

"What? No! I told you it's _him_!" She yelled.

"Yeah, yeah lady. Save it!" The officer behind her yelled back and carried her out.

"No! Stop it! I'm not the one you _want_!" She kept yelling it over and over again, but to no avail. She was soon thrown into the back of the police car. The car started to drive away. She turned around to look out the back window and found Jin waving and smiling at her.

Oh, that bastard!

"Oh so close…but not close enough." Jin muttered to himself before snickering and heading to his car.

* * *

Sigh, sigh, siiigghh! Wtf, yo! He got away?

Review please. I'm just *sighs hard* I'm just through.


	21. Thinking Of You

Hey folks! Of course, I'm back with another one.

I want to start off thanking all of those who read, favorited and/or reviewed on my oneshot story 'Welcome To Twenty-One'. I really appreciate it. For those of y'all who hadn't come across it yet, feel free to read it!

I also want to thank the ones who showed me love on this joint too! Thanks to all who favorited and reviewed. And although I have no idea who you guys are, thanks to the silent readers as well. I know ya'll out there. lol I used to be one too.

But anyways, College just started last week and I love it! I expected all the teachers to be boring and monotonous lol and I thought that all the classes were going to be like a big ass auditorium, like the ones in the movies lol. Well, there are colleges like that, but not mine. We got freakin' rooms. There's only a few classes with rows going up, but they aren't that big and not all of the seats are filled up. So don't believe what you see in movies, folks lol.

But I'm really feelin' it. Especially the hours. No night classes, yeah I like that lol. And we got Tropical Smoothie, Pizza Hut and Chick Fil-A. Plus another dining hall, like a cafeteria at school, but the food is actually delicious lol. And everything, but math homework is transferred online.

*Jeezy Voice* And I love it!

But yeah, enough about me!

Shoutouts to my favorite people in the world. Cruella de 'Chelle, MissG2020, jayjai107, & ShellieB. (Where's Miss Ace, Youngkong313 & MzMinni3? :o!) Thanks to Jazavelli, Rivi2012, boyluvr250 and keyks554 as well. Ya'll motivate me to go on, for real. Not that I planned on stopping, but I wouldn't be updating so recently if it weren't for ya'll so i greatly appreciate it. I really love ya'll for that.

And please read Jazavelli's story 'Hometown Glory', if you haven't yet. No lie, that story is crazy good. Never a dull chapter in that story. I'm always hype when I read it lol

But yeah, Crystal was kinda stupid for dropping the gun on the other side, huh? Lol had to make her do something dumb to increase drama. This chapter isn't as intense though. I wanted to focus my attention on Huey and Jazmine, as promised in the last chapter, so here it is.

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN BD!

And why the hell do I have typos in almost all of my chapters? I don't care how many times I correct them. There's always an error I find after the chapter's posted! Ugh, I hate that shit!

Anyways, yeah. Read lol

* * *

CHAPTER 21: THINKING OF YOU

Sluggishly, Riley Freeman pushed the front door open and closed it behind him. Damn, it was a long day. All he wanted to do was sleep.

Even if it _was_ only 8:30PM.

Eventually Huey, Jazmine and Cindy met up with him and Stacia at the hospital, supporting the family. Mr. Jackson had a talk with them about the whole Cindy thing (they excluded the Briana part for now). Damn, he felt bad. He should've kept his phone on him, no matter how important his job was. He would've been there to support her had he answered his daughter's calls.

Lord only knew how many times that man apologized to his daughter, but she didn't care. She was just glad her mother was okay. They found out that she was stabbed in her side (luckily no major organs were punctured), beaten up and _almost _raped. Only she knew why he didn't rape her like he initially planned on doing, but she wasn't saying anything. She was too petrified. Jin had money. If he was ever put in jail, he could easily be released! God knew she wanted to tell her husband, her daughter, the police, _anybody_, what happened, but she couldn't do it.

Anyways, nobody was home. Granddad went to the store to get some more orange juice and Huey was at Caesar's. Everyone but Riley and Stacia had their rest so they were fine. Stacia just dropped him off and went home to pack. She wanted to stay the night at the hospital.

"Shit." Riley cursed tiredly. He felt like he hadn't slept in days. He almost didn't make it to the living room, but he did, collapsing on the couch. He didn't even bother changing, taking off his shoes, or getting a cover. In a second, he was out like a light.

Meanwhile at Caesar's…

"Man, I feel bad for Stacia." Caesar said in a sympathetic voice. He sighed as he dropped a card. They were playing 'I Declare War' and Caesar had the higher card. "Gimme that shit, nigga!"

Huey rolled his eyes at the last comment. "It's just a game, Ceez. Damn, you just like Riley." Caesar shrugged with a small, proud smile. "But yeah, at least her mom's okay."

Caesar nodded as he dropped another card. He had a Jack, but Huey had a King. He looked up at his friend with a playful scowl, earning a light smirk out of him. "Yeah, but all this shit happenin' over the past…what, four days?"

Huey groaned. "Don't even bring it up! I get a headache just thinkin' about that shit." Caesar chuckled at his friend's irritation.

"I still can't believe she turned herself in, though. She _is_ crazy."

Huey shrugged, hitting Caesar with a Joker. "Yeah, she is. But she got some strong will power if she's willing to go through with all of that."

Caesar didn't reply. He just stared at the Joker for a long time. Huey looked at him amusedly, waiting for him to put his card down.

"It's not goin' anywhere. Just put somethin' down. I'm gonna win this hand anyways."

"No you won't!"

"Nigga, I have a _Joker_. What's higher than that?"

Caesar frowned childishly. "Nuh uh, we playin' deuces." Huey shook his head.

"Hell no, nigga. Don't change the rules now."

Caesar grumbled in defeat. Huey looked at his friend, hesitating and realized what the problem was.

"You have an Ace, don't you?"

When Caesar didn't reply, Huey pulled his lips in his mouth, trying not to smile. Caesar sighed hard and finally dropped down an Ace of hearts.

"Thank you." Huey joked while Caesar playfully flipped him the bird.

"But word, I'm proud of you, bruh."

Huey lifted his brow. "For what?"

Caesar snorted. "Nigga said, 'for what'." He put down a two of diamonds. "Man!"

"Yeah, I said 'for what', meaning…what the hell are you talking about?" Huey responded smartly as he put down a two of spades.

"I Declare War!" Caesar yelled. They quickly flipped four cards, resulting in Huey flipping a four of spades and Caesar flipping a seven of diamonds. "Yeah!"

"Don't change the subject." Huey commanded his best friend. "What do you mean?"

Caesar smirked as he collected his cards. "You and Jazmine, man."

Huey rolled his eyes. "Here we go."

"Naw, for real!" He almost shrieked boyishly. "I always wanted ya'll to get together man, but I ain't think ya'll would actually do it. Not that I ain't have faith in ya'll, but after about three years, I gave up hope." Huey rolled his eyes again. "But I'm glad you found someone though. Even if she was up under your nose all this time."

Huey shrugged again. "Aye man, I appreciate it, but it's not that big a deal."

Caesar slammed his fists on the table so hard and quick, he made Huey jump.

"What the hell?"

"Not a big deal!" He shouted.

"Hey! Quiet down down there!" A voice from upstairs yelled.

"Sorry Aunt Joan!" He yelled back. He glared at Huey almost seriously. "Nigga what you mean, 'not that big a deal'? Huey Freeman in love? That's something new. That _is _a big deal!"

Huey scoffed. "Whatever." Caesar laughed.

"Yo sprung ass."

Huey snorted. "Don't let me get on you about Cindy, now."

"Psshh, nigga please. You don't got nothin' on me." He said, looking at the eight of clubs Huey just threw down.

Huey snorted again. "Is that right?" He inquired knowingly. "Cindy got the sexiest tattoo! I can't wait to see it at her pool party! Oh my God!" He mocked, trying to imitate Caesar. Caesar frowned as he threw a six of clubs on the table.

"I don't sound like that."

"Might as well." Caesar smirked.

"Yeah, well her tattoo_ is _sexy. You just ain't see it yet." He argued as Huey smirked back. "And you can't talk wit' yo' 'Jazmine's belly ring is so hot it could give a nigga wet dreams' lookin' ass." He joked, making Huey chuckle.

"Shut up. You haven't seen _that_ yet either. So what you sayin'?"

"I'm sayin' that what you sayin' is irrelevant. No matter how sexy these girls are, there's a major difference. You're in love with one, and I'm not. Cindy's my best friend…other than you of course."

Huey shrugged again. "So what?"

That's when Caesar's smirk widened into a bright, toothy grin. Huey looked at him sideways.

"What?"

Caesar snickered, that grin still evident. "You love her."

They stared at each other for a good minute. Huey looked at him with his usual facial expression, while Caesar looked overly excited. After what seemed like a whole minute,

"Yeah…so?"

"AAAHHH!" Caesar screamed excitedly, but apologized immediately to his Aunt upstairs. Huey shook his head, but let a small smile form on his lips, along with a deep blush.

Damn.

"Shut up and play." He replied in a tone that meant he wanted the conversation to end soon. Caesar played, but the conversation didn't stop.

"So…you tell her yet?" He asked in interest. Huey shook his head no.

"Not yet. I wanted to tell her today, but the whole Stacia's mom thing was in the way."

Caesar nodded in understanding. "Yeah, well lemme know what she says when you tell her."

With a roll of his eyes, Huey chucked his three of hearts at him.

"Hey!" Caesar silently exclaimed.

"I'd expect her to say it back." He responded monotonously. Caesar shook his head.

"Well duh. But I wanna know how she says it." Huey gave him a funny look.

"You doin' too much."

Caesar laughed half-heartedly. "You sounded like your brother just now."

Huey pointed at him. "Don't insult me like that again."

Caesar laughed harder. Huey was so stupid sometimes.

"You dumb yo." He said after he got himself together. Huey shrugged. "Oh, and don't think after ya'll say 'I love you', things just gonna go on like it has been." He informed his friend, as if he didn't know. Huey rolled his eyes once more.

"I know, Ceez."

"First ya'll gonna be all lovey dovey-"

"Ceez…"

"-then ya'll gon' be goin' over each other's houses, practically livin' with each other-"

"Caesar."

"-then ya'll gon' start gettin' freaky and shit and-"

"Caesar!"

"-end up like Riley and Stacia, fuckin' all the time-"

"Goddamnit Michael!" Huey yelled heatedly.

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Ms. Joan!"

Caesar was cracking up as he noticed Huey's cheeks turn a deeper shade of red.

"My bad man. You ain't have to call me by my first name though." Huey shook his head.

"You're unbelievable." Caesar shrugged, still laughing.

"Man, I'm about done with this game." He finally announced after he was done laughing.

"Yeah, me too." Huey agreed.

"Want somethin' to drink?" His friend offered. Huey shook his head.

"Naw, I think I'm gonna head home now."

"Aw man, niggas always leavin' me." Caesar pouted jokingly. Huey raised his eyebrow as he stood up.

"…That was very gay."

"Shut up, _Riley_."

Huey walked up to him and hit him in the back of his head. Caesar just laughed in response.

* * *

"Girl, I'm serious. He loves you. Ain't no denyin' that!"

Jazmine laughed as she fell back onto her bed.

"I don't know. How can you tell?"

Cindy scoffed playfully as she laid right beside Jazmine on her back. "Girl please! It's all in his aura! That glint in his eyes when he looks at you, the things he does for you, the way he speaks to you."

Jazmine sighed dreamily. "Well, I hope so. Because I love _him_." She admitted with pride. Cindy snickered.

"I knew it."

"Hush." Jazmine playfully warned. "No, really I wanted to tell him today, but the whole Stacia thing…"

Cindy nodded. "Yeah. Speaking of which, she told me to tell you something."

Jazmine turned her head to her friend in confusion. "What?"

A silly smirk played on Cindy's lips. "She said for you to tell Huey to strap up." She busted out laughing after that.

Jazmine's mouth was wide open and her cheeks were on fire. She playfully pushed Cindy off of the bed and shook her head.

"You guys are crazy!" She shrieked. Cindy was still weak.

"Oh man, you should've seen your face!" She exclaimed as she hopped back on the bed.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

After she calmed down, she turned to her friend with a straight face. "Okay, on the real though, when ya'll get to that point…please stay protected."

Jazmine giggled. "What, do you think I'm stupid?"

Cindy sighed. "It's not about that. Sometimes people get caught up in the heat of the moment and don't think. Please try to think when ya'll start doin' the nasty." Jazmine giggled again at her choice of words.

"'_When_'? How do you know we won't break up before we get to that?" She joked. Cindy slapped her shoulder, making her laugh loud.

"Bitch, you better not!" Jazmine gasped.

"Hey! Don't call me that!"

Cindy hugged her tightly. "Aw, I'm sorry girl! I just don't want to hear you talkin' like that." Jazmine laughed again.

"Yeah, whatever. What do you care about our sex life anyways?" She asked in all curiosity. Cindy smiled at the mention of the two of them having a 'sex life'.

"Ya'll done already started?"

Jazmine's eyes grew. "No you idiot!" Cindy laughed again. "Hush!"

"Sorry, sorry." She apologized unconvincingly. "But I just don't want you gettin' prego on me, girl. You too young for that."

Jazmine snickered. "Cindy, I'm not going to get pregnant. I'm pretty sure Huey wouldn't let himself do anything without protection and I have birth control pills-"

"WHAT!" Cindy exclaimed in shock. Jazmine shook her head.

"I haven't used them yet!"

Cindy shook hers as well. "Oh, well that's good. I mean, you should use 'em, but I'm sayin'…if you had to use 'em now, ya'll some freaks."

That comment caused her to get pushed off again. Jazmine smiled amusedly and shook her head again. She pulled her hair out of that ponytail and let it fall on her shoulders. Cindy got back up in her spot on the bed, unfazed by the fact that her friend was literally pushing her around.

"Yeah, yeah. Are you staying over?" Cindy gave her a duh look. Jazmine grinned and jumped up on her feet. "Well, you know what that means, right?"

Cindy grinned as well and sat up.

"Yeah,"

"MOVIE NIGHT!" They yelled before racing downstairs to the stacks of DVDs in the living room.

* * *

In the hallway, pacing back and forth was Stacia's father. He was so frustrated. He knew this had to be some dude she met up with who did this. Though it was a relief that she wasn't raped and the gash wasn't as bad as he thought, he was still pissed. He had reason to be. As much as he didn't want to be mad at his wife, he was. She left him for someone and now this is the end result. The hospital. On Sunday, too? He was sure that powerful message got through to her. He hoped it did.

And of course, he was angry at whoever the hell this nigga was. Beating up on women? Who _does_ that? He wanted to find this guy and kill him, but his faith in God just wasn't going to allow him to do so. He just wanted the police to handle it.

If only his wife would give up the details. What? Was she afraid of how he'd react if she told him she left to see someone else? He already knew! He just wanted to turn the criminal in.

He couldn't stay in that room for long periods because he'd go off. He knew that, and that wasn't a good look. His daughter was in there for crying out loud. His wife was on the hospital bed. He couldn't do that. He'd have to go in there at some point in time though. He had to find somewhere to sleep, didn't he?

Just then, he heard the door creak open and soft footsteps. He turned around to find Stacia in her black and white polka dot PJs and black socks. Her hair was in a scarf and she had a thin, white cover over her shoulders.

"Dad? You comin' back in?" She timidly asked. It was awkward for her. They never really talked.

He looked at his daughter with sad eyes. She had no idea what was going on with her mother. She didn't know she was a cheater, and she didn't know that some man beat up on her. It was sad, and it was going to be hard to break the news to her.

So he wasn't going to be the one to break it to her. Her mother was.

"Yeah. In a minute." He replied with a sigh. She nodded and went back into the room.

He shook his head and slammed his fist into his hand. This was maddening. He hated their broken relationship. Two broken relationships in a family that's supposed to be one. That was heartbreaking to him…to them all, really. They needed to get it together.

In the room,

Stacia sat on the futon, and watched her mother as she slept. She looked horrible. She looked weak, like she was in so much…pain. The way her face was twisted up seemed as if she was reliving what happened to her…like it was one of those realistic nightmares that haunted her over and over again.

After a while, she sighed and laid down on her side, facing her mom. She pulled the cover on top of her and closed her eyes, trying to get some sleep.

About an hour later, she heard the footsteps of her father walk in and sit in the chair opposite of her mother. In a minute or so, he was out.

It was amazing how fast he went to sleep, but she just couldn't do it. God, not _this_ again.

Insomnia. Ugh!

She groaned and turned on her other side. That didn't work either. She tried and tried…all night, but she just couldn't get any sleep.

"Damn." She muttered lowly. It was final. She wasn't going to sleep. She got up, stretched and walked past her parents, out the room. She went downstairs to the Café area and got some food and snacks.

She also wasn't going to school. There was no way she'd stay focused.

* * *

"_Huey!"_

_The young freedom fighter opened his eyes to find the mulatto cutie standing at the foot of his bed. He groaned sleepily and rubbed his eyes to adjust them._

"_Jazmine?" He inquired, shocked beyond belief. Where did she come from, and how did she get in?_

_At the mention of her name, she grinned and walked up to his side. That's when he noticed what she had on. Pink and white Victoria' Secret sweatpants and a matching pink and white flimsy shirt. And when I say flimsy, I mean _flimsy. _Like, if she were to jump around, all her business would be out in the open._

That_ didn't bother him though. What bothered him was what she _didn't _have on._

_A bra._

_He gulped as she walked over to the computer chair and brought it over to his side. She sat down and faced him with the same grin. _

"_Jazmine, what are you doing here?" He asked, not meaning to say it like _that_. She frowned anyways._

"_I just wanted to see my boyfriend. Is that a crime, Huey?" She asked irritably, raising her voice. Huey shushed her as he noticed Riley sleeping._

"_Quiet. You'll wake him up."_

_She let out a quiet giggle. "Oh, sorry."_

_He rolled his eyes in response. "Well, I'm okay with you being here, but what about your parents?"_

_She scoffed and waggled her fingers. "They're sleeping. I mean, what they don't know won't hurt 'em right?" She said with a sly smirk. Huey looked at her sideways._

_So…she was being sneaky now?_

_Huey couldn't help but smirk at her behavior. It was cute._

"_So, you think you bad now?" Jazmine giggled again._

"_I don't think it…I know it." She replied in a low, seductive voice as her green orbs met with his reddish-brown ones. He didn't say a word. He was so turned on by that voice and her sleeping attire. He felt a rise in his black sweatpants and inwardly cursed himself. This woman was the devil in disguise. _

"_What are you doin' to me?" He asked in a hypnotic tone, not even thinking about what he was saying. His breathing was shallow, and his heart nearly beat out of his chest. She had him, he couldn't deny that. He was two seconds away from pulling her on top of him. _

_She did that cute giggle again as she moved her face closer to his. He gulped again in anticipation. Not like they haven't kissed before, but with her looking and acting like_ that_, anything could happen. And he wasn't even sure if he had the right materials to go all the way._

_Just then, Jazmine connected her lips with his and he almost lost all control. She moaned into his mouth softly, driving him crazy! When she did it again, he lost it and picked her up with incredible strength. She laughed as he did so. Once she was on top of him, they went at it. They were all down each other's throats, moaning and groaning as their bodies ground into each other. They were moving so fast! Huey's hands were inside her shirt, rubbing her smooth back as Jazmine rubbed her hands all over his exposed chest._

_The two got friskier. Huey's hands went down to her ass and gently caressed it, earning another moan from his girl. It was like music to his ears. Shit!_

_He broke the kiss, just to move to her neck. God, she smelled so good. Those moans filled the air again, and it was a wonder Riley was still asleep. Hell, Huey didn't even care anymore._

_This was it. This was the night he'd give his woman all of him._

_Just when he hooked his fingers on her waistband, attempting to pull down her sweatpants…_

BEEEEEEPPP! BEEEEEEPPP! BEEEEEEPPP! BEEEEEEEEEEPPPPP!

…it was Monday morning.

He immediately arose from his slumber, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head. He looked around to find himself on the coach across from the TV. Riley was sleep on the coach beside him. He groaned in frustration. That damn alarm clock always goes off at the _wrong time_!

Wait…he just dreamt about him and Jazmine nearly doing it. So, he was fantasizing about her, now? Great.

"Shit." He cursed as he looked down at himself, his eyes still bulging.

Morning wood. Hehe.

Oh, wait…that's not funny.

Well, it is to me. Haha!

Anyways.

He hurriedly ran upstairs before anyone woke up and noticed his…predicament, and hit the shower.

He had to tell her he loved her today or he'd literally go insane.

* * *

The room was dark and bare. There was a large mirror on one side, a large, grey rectangular table in the middle and four chairs, one on each side. It was kind of retarded looking since the table was so long. The only reason all of that could be seen was because of the lone light bulb dangling lowly over the middle of the table.

Crystal sat on the side opposite from the door and held a deep scowl. Ever since she was driven away from the hotel, she had that expression on her face. She didn't even speak. She was too pissed off. Damn! Why the hell was she _there_? Why didn't they believe her? Why didn't they even _question_ him? They just let him get away! Fucking punk ass cops!

She impatiently waited for someone to come in. She just wanted to get this over with and be gone. They said they were going to run a lie detector test on her. Good. Then they'd feel stupid and she'd be able to give them his whereabouts.

She's already been in there for twenty minutes. What the hell was _taking_ so long?

Twenty _more_ minutes later, a white guy with red hair and a vicious scowl on his face entered in. The look was quite scary, and if Crystal wasn't so upset, she'd be fear-stricken. But she wasn't. She just wanted to go.

"Took ya'll long enough." She muttered angrily as she saw him take his seat across from her.

All the way on the other side of the table. She rolled her eyes. This was so stupid.

"Look woman. If you were a guy talking to me like a smart-ass, I'd waste no time kicking you in the nuts!"

Crystal scrunched her face up at what the weirdo just said. Her face stayed that way as they stared at each other for awhile. She finally broke the silence.

"So…you enjoy kicking guys in the nuts?"

"It's my job! Look, that's not what we're here for! Tell me why you tried to kill Jin Taylor?" He screamed immediately after her question. She stared at him in shock and disbelief. Who _was_ this guy and what's his _problem_?

"Okay, first of all, Jin Taylor is not innocent, alri-"

"I didn't ask if he was innocent! I wanna know why you tried to kill him!"

He yelled at her again, except this time was much harsher. She stared at the crazy man for quite some time. Was he really qualified for his job? Looks like he belongs in the crazy house.

If she weren't handcuffed, she would've held up her hands, indicating that he needed to chill.

"Okay, look. He beat up on a woman who goes to the hotel I work at all the time."

The man gave her a 'yeah, right' expression, which earned a hard glare out of Crystal.

"I'm serious!" She yelled this time, getting his full attention. "I saw her, not even twenty minutes later than she checked in, limp out the door holding her side. And her face was all bruised and shit. It wasn't pretty!"

The red-haired man just nodded slowly for her to go on.

"And not too long after that, this asshole comes out the elevator tryna leave, but oh naw, I caught his ass. I asked him what happened to the woman-"

"What's the woman's name?"

Crystal froze for a second after he asked her that. She didn't even know why she left Tina's name out. She just didn't, but it wasn't intentional.

"Oh, Tina Jackson."

The man nodded again, waiting for her to go on, and she wasted no time in doing so. Shoot, this was getting better and better. She'd soon leave and get on with her life, knowing she helped another woman beaten up by trifling niggas.

She went on telling him everything, from Jin's slip up, to what happened when the cops arrived.

"So, hold up. He's still _loose_?"

"YEEESSS!" Crystal couldn't stress that enough. She'd been saying that since before she was thrown in the back of the cop car. Now someone wants to listen to her?

It's about time.

"Alright. Well, thank you Ms. Crystal. And sorry for the misunderstanding."

He opened the door to let another cop in. She thought she was going back to the jail cell, and she almost flipped, but she felt the weight of the handcuffs fall to the ground, changing her mood.

"You're free to go." She didn't say thanks, she didn't say goodbye. She just left.

She'd never been so relieved in all her life. Now she had to go home and see about the Jacksons. She sure hoped she still had a phonebook.

* * *

"Hello?"

"_Hey, I'm comin' over. You ready?"_

"Yeah, but Cindy's not."

"…_She's with you?"_

Jazmine rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's response.

"Yes, silly."

"_Oh. Well tell her to hurry up. Riley's comin' down any minute now_."

"Okay."

With that, the both of them hung up. Jazmine sighed as she dropped it in her purse. She couldn't wait to see him. They both needed to talk, somewhere private. She wanted to tell him how she really felt, regardless of how he'd respond. True, it'd be pretty devastating if he didn't feel the same way as she did, but she just had to tell him. She was starting to have some pretty impure dreams about him and she knew she had to tell him how she felt or else she'd go crazy.

Sounds familiar don't it?

Not a second to waste, the phone rang again. She pulled it out of her purse and looked at the contact. She rolled her eyes with a smile and answered it.

"Yesss?"

"…_Do they really need to ride with us_?"

She laughed at her retarded boyfriend.

"Shut up, Huey. They're coming."

"_Fine_." He huffed and clicked off. She laughed again and shook her head. She really did love him.

"Cindy!" She yelled from the staircase. "Hurry! The boys are coming!"

"Ooh! Caesar's coming?" Cindy abruptly responded, but regretted it just as quick.

Jazmine's eyes widened as her ears picked up what her best friend just said.

"…What?"

"What?"

"…"

"…"

"Just hurry up!"

"Aiight, Jaz, chill!"

Cindy yelled back from the top. Jazmine giggled again. She couldn't believe what Cindy was saying. So she was feeling Caesar now? Although she just said 'Ooh! Caesar's coming', she sounded eager as hell. She didn't have to say 'I'm feeling him' or 'I like him'. It was obvious.

Jazmine shrugged and sat down to put on her sandals.

She decided to look cute today. She wore a dress with pink and orange flowers all over, that stopped right above her knees. She had on a cardigan to go with her shoes and chose to bring her matching purse. She wore gold jewelry; earrings, bracelets and her favorite necklace. She had no makeup on and she wore her hair out in one puffball. She smiled as she thought of the first time she met Huey and how he tried to convince her that she was just fine with her out-of-control hair. It took a few years for her to realize that he was right, but at least she _did_ realize it. She should've known anyways, he was almost always right.

She smiled hard as she thought of him again. Man, she couldn't wait to see him.

Just then, the doorbell rang and she nearly sprinted to the door with one sandal on and the other in her right hand.

"Coming!" She yelled and the next second, she flung the door open. She smiled hard as she was met face to face with her man. "Hey baby!" She yelled and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight.

Trapped in her arms, Huey drew his eyebrows close together.

"Jazmine,"

"Hmm?"

"Let me go." He demanded in a soft voice. Jazmine jumped back and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry." She apologized and walked back over to the couch to put on her other sandal. Huey closed the door behind him and walked to the seat across from her. He watched her as she slipped her foot into the sandal and smirked.

"You look cute." He complimented, making her smile and blush.

"Thanks." She replied, looking up at him. "Hey, can you come over later today?"

Huey shrugged. "Sure. I planned on stopping by anyways."

Jazmine grinned excitedly. "Great! Because I need to tell you something important, but don't worry about it until the time comes."

Huey shrugged again. "Fine. I gotta tell you something too."

"What?" Jazmine asked right away. He shook his head at her excited state.

"Not now. Later."

Both knew what they were going to say later, but neither knew what the _other_ was going to say.

Oh well, all that will be discussed in the future. Right now, they had to get to school on time.

"Hey, baby could you give me the five dollars on the table?" Jazmine asked him. He rolled his eyes.

"Can you please stop with the pet names?" He asked politely as he stood up and waltzed over to the table. Jazmine tilted her head to the side.

"Why? You don't like it?" she inquired.

He shook his head. "No, that's not it. Just, when you say it you make me wanna…"

He stopped talking as he realized what he was about to say, but Jazmine knew what he meant. She laughed as she caught on.

"I make you want to say it, too?" She teased lightly. As he walked to her with the money, he brought his finger to his lips indicating for her to stop talking. She laughed in response.

She retrieved the money and thanked him. He nodded and stretched a little. That couch at home wasn't very comfortable.

"Well, Riley's in the car. I'm goin' too. Tell Cindy I said to hurry up."

"Nigga, I'm comin'!" Cindy yelled as she nearly rushed down the steps. Rather than wearing her chill clothes, Cindy came into her friends' view wearing black skinny jeans, a white long-sleeved button up and black flats. That part wasn't what took her so long. It was the way her hair was styled so perfectly and how beautiful her natural make-up made her look. She had her hair in a single ponytail placed at the bottom left of her head and she had the ends curled, giving it body. Her bangs rested right on top of her perfectly arched eyebrows.

She looked like a true white girl, but she didn't care. As long as she looked cute and people didn't try acting differently towards her, it didn't matter. Besides, she _is _white.

Jazmine almost gasped as watched her friend walking towards her.

"Cindy…"

Cindy stared at her friend's open mouth expression and rolled her eyes. "What?"

"You look so pretty!" Jazmine screamed girlishly, earning a punch to the arm by her friend. Huey shrugged once more.

"She's right. You look nice, Cindy."

Cindy raised her eyebrow. "Uh…thanks, but Huey you never complimented me before."

Once again, Huey shrugged. Today was the day he was going to tell his girl he loved her. He didn't care what people thought and no one was about to ruin his good mood.

"Yeah well, don't get used to it." He told her as he started walking out. Jazmine smiled and shook her head.

"And he's right back to bein' an asshole." Cindy muttered playfully. Jazmine rolled her eyes and followed her boyfriend out, along with Cindy.

When they reached the car, Riley looked out the window and spotted Cindy.

"Yo, Cindy you look different." Riley acknowledged as Jazmine opened his door. He looked to his right and rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, I'm gettin' up."

Jazmine laughed a little. "No, it's okay. I'll sit in the back this time."

Riley looked at her and smiled. "Aiight, cool!"

Huey shook his head as he turned the car on. As soon as he was sure everyone was in the car and strapped in, he drove off.

That's when Cindy noticed something was missing.

"Hey, where's Caesar?"

Meanwhile at the doctor's office,

"NO! I DON'T WANT IT!"

"Caesar, it's not that-"

"NO! I'VE DONE THIS BEFORE! NOTHING YOU CAN SAY OR DO IS GOING TO CHANGE HOW I FEEL ABOUT THIS!"

"Caesar. It's required that you take this-"

"DAMN THAT! I'M AN AMERICAN WITH RIGHTS! I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS!"

All three doctors looked at each other with knowing looks before pinning the overly frantic teen on the bed. One of them finally stuck the needle in his arm and removed the blood. Caesar screamed dramatically, as if he was watching his parents getting murdered or something.

Within a minute or so, the needle was removed and replaced with a gauze.

"See. Now that wasn't so bad was it?" One of the doctors asked, knowing damn well Caesar didn't like it.

He didn't answer her. He just looked up at her with his bottom lip sticking out, like a little kid. If he didn't look like a grown man with the facial hair and all, she would've actually found it cute.

"Now, for your second blood sample-"

"WHAT!"

Back at the car,

"He went to the doctor for a physical." Huey answered Cindy's question. She rolled her eyes, but stayed quiet. She didn't want to let them know it, but she was looking cute for him. For his sake, he better show up for school.

* * *

"Knock knock." A peppy, thin white woman walked into the hospital room with a tray of food.

Stacia looked up, her eyes droopy as all hell and nodded. The woman took that as permission to set the tray down on the small table and did so. Without a word, she left.

Stacia let out a long yawn and stared down at her chocolate sundae. She didn't want that shit. She just wasted her money buying all of the junk food she could afford, watching soap operas. She just wanted to get some freaking sleep. Was that too much to ask? It's not as if her weekend hasn't been hard enough. First the Briana thing, now this. What the hell?

She looked over her mom's sleeping form and noticed her dad wasn't there. She knew he was gone, but she just wished he'd come back. For some reason, she didn't want him to leave. She didn't want to be the only one in the room with her mother. She felt as if the attacker would enter in and try to harm them both with her father gone. That thought didn't sit well with her at all.

She groaned irritably and placed the sundae on the tray. She need some sleep!

She laid back down to give it another try, but found it impossible. What she needed was some sedatives.

She sighed heavily and just reclined on the futon to watch some more TV. What else was there to do?

* * *

Riley stared blankly at the teacher as he went on and on about the single-celled organisms. His mind wasn't even focused on that. All he could think about was his girl, and how sad she was the day before. He hated that shit. He never liked to see her upset, and he hated how her mother was a victim, of all people. He didn't know her well, because of Stacia's almost non-existent relationship with her, but he still felt bad. Why? He didn't know. It wasn't his fault.

Man, he just wanted to see his baby again. He just hoped she wasn't on that Insomnia shit again, because whenever that happened, it was hard to get her to sleep properly again. He made a mental note to see her right after school let out. He had one more class left. It wouldn't be long.

"Mr. Freeman."

The nasal voice calling his name yanked him out of his thoughts.

"Yeah?" He asked, caught off guard. The teacher sighed hard. "Could you explain to me what the flagella is?"

Inwardly, Riley rolled his eyes. This was stupid. He couldn't believe how easy this class was, yet how long and drawn out it was. His teacher's boring nature just made things so much longer for some reason.

He sighed.

"Flagella are single long whip-like structures that propel the cell forward." He monotonously answered, ready to leave the room. Time was ticking, but apparently not fast enough.

The teacher looked taken aback by Riley's educated answer. Riley noticed and inwardly smirked at his dumbass teacher.

_Yeah nigga, I ain't stupid. _He thought.

"…Great answer, Riley. That's something I expected your brother to say. Very impressive."

Riley glared at the asshole.

"Yo, just because he like to talk all proper like, don't make my dumber than him." He yelled at the man. The teacher's eyes grew in shock and nervousness. He didn't mean to upset the boy.

"Oh, no. Riley I didn't say you were dumb. I just never thought I'd hear you give me a straight answer."

"So, what…you were testin' me?" Riley argued. Cindy sat to his right and looked at him with wide eyes, just like the rest of the sophomore class. Lamaar and Marcus were in the back with wide grins. "Try me again. See if I don't get it right, then."

The teacher shook his head. "Now Riley, I don't want to start any trouble."

Riley laughed bitterly. "Too late. Hurry up, we got like five minutes. I'm sure you could think up somethin' within that timeframe."

Cindy smirked at her friend challenging the teacher. He was crazy, but she gave him props. Shoot, she was glad he stood up for himself. Teachers always tryna play somebody on the low.

"Mr. Freeman,"

"Mr. Lewis,"

"Riley!"

"Arthur!"

That was it. The class busted out laughing. Riley called the teacher by his name, and it was the funniest thing to them. Arthur? _Really_? So that's your name, huh?

The teacher's face turned red in anger and embarrassment. He couldn't believe his student was trying to show him up.

"Fine!" He agreed. Riley crossed his arms with a smirk. "Tell me what Biology means."

The class groaned while Riley gave the teacher a weird look. Did the nigga really think he was stupid? Clearly, he must've thought he was retarded or something.

"The study of life. You mind givin' me some…I don't know…_real_ questions?" Riley challenged him again with annoyance present in his features. The teacher gulped. He didn't think Riley knew that answer since he's never seemed interested in the subject before!

Dumbass teacher! He_ still _isn't! The class is just too easy!

"Okay," The man timidly started. "What are the main elements found in the nucleus within a cell?"

"Chromatin, nucleolus, and nuclear membrane."

"…That's correct." Mr. Lewis droned in a sad tone.

Lamaar and Marcus whooped and hollered for him as Cindy clapped and cheered. "Yeeaaah! Go Riley!"

Riley smiled and motioned for the teacher to go on.

"What is the nucleolus?" The teacher asked slowly, a light smirk forming. He didn't even teach this lesson yet. Riley couldn't possibly know this answer.

Or could he?

Riley sighed hard. "We didn't go over that."

Mr. Lewis shrugged. "Well, give it a shot anyways."

Riley frowned hard, making Mr. Lewis' smile grow, but as he watched his shady teacher get excited, his frown turned upside down, confusing the man.

"Like I said, we didn't go over that," He looked to Cindy who tried so hard not to laugh. "But the nucleolus is the small and optically dense region in the inside of the nucleus made of rRNA and proteins. For those of ya'll that don't know, rRNA, also known as ribosomal ribonucleic acid, is the RNA component of the ribosome, the organelle that is the site of protein synthesis within cells. It provides a mechanism for decoding mRNA into amino acids and interacts with tRNAs during translation by providing peptidyl transferase activity."

The entire room fell silent as they gawked at the exact replica of his brother. What the hell? This nigga's a genius!

"Nigga, this shit too easy." He said in a tired-like tone. As everyone remained quiet, he looked around.

He noticed everyone's shocked expressions and felt a smirk play upon his lips. He knew he was gonna surprise some people, but he didn't care. It was time for people to know who he was. He was the same old Riley, the silly, arrogant, cool guy, but he was also highly intelligent, and he hated how people always failed to see that. They always compared him to his brother, and though he was aware that his brother made smarter choices than he did, he knew he wasn't that much smarter than he was.

"Yo," he heard a loud whisper behind him and turned around to see Lamaar with the goofiest expression he'd ever seen on him. Riley smiled hard. "I knew you were smart, but damn. You showed that nigga up."

Riley snickered as the rest of the class complimented him on his intelligence. Yeah, he was the shit.

The teacher didn't say anything. He just awkwardly walked over to his desk and took his seat.

Fuck it. The kid he least expected to make him feel stupid, just made him feel stupid. He was just done for the day. He picked up his jacket, his lunch bag, and whatever else he brought with him that morning and started to leave.

"Do whatever you want. I'm going home." He announced, as if anyone cared.

They just looked at him for a while.

"Cool." Riley broke the silence.

Then they all started yelling excitedly and acting like complete fools. He rolled his eyes and walked out, feeling a migraine coming on.

* * *

3:15, the bell rang. Class was dismissed and everyone either ran to the buses or to their cars.

The gang, minus Stacia and Caesar met up with each other in the parking lot.

Cindy huffed irritably as she and Riley walked towards Huey and Jazmine. "Where the hell is Caesar now?"

She hadn't seen him all day! A doctor's appointment isn't supposed to last that long. Nigga had her looking pretty for nothing!

"No idea. He should've been here today. It's just a physical, not an operation." Jazmine said. Huey shrugged, causing Cindy to frown. Not at him, but at the fact that the nigga wasn't there!

"Man, whatever."

The four of them walked together and headed for the car. That's when Cindy remembered something important.

"Yo! Let me tell you what yo' brother did in Biology!" Cindy excitedly told Huey. Huey looked at her with an unreadable expression. He didn't look annoyed, nor did he look pleased. She couldn't figure it out, but she didn't care.

"What?"

Riley rolled his eyes as he grinned wide. "Naw, Cindy you ain't gotta tell this nigga nothin'. He probably saw that shit comin'."

Cindy turned to Riley quickly. "Hell no!" She turned back to Huey just as quick. Jazmine tried not to laugh. Cindy was trippin'.

"Okay, so this bitch ass teacher tried to play him, right?" She kept talking as they all got into Huey's Mercedes. Jaz sat in the front this time. Riley didn't mind at all.

"He was like, 'Mr. Freeman, what does the flagella do,' or 'what is the flagella's job' or somethin' like that. Then Riles was soundin' like you, answerin' the question just like a fuckin' scholar or some shit."

Huey didn't start the car yet. He wanted to wait until Cindy was done with the story.

He turned around in his seat to look at her. "Well, what did he say?"

Cindy shrugged, causing Huey's eyes to roll. Riley laughed and shook his head.

"I said, 'Flagella are single long whip-like structures that propel the cell forward', and the nigga looked at me like I was an alien or somethin'."

Huey smirked. "That's not surprising." Jazmine shook her head though.

"I beg to differ."

Riley sucked his teeth. "Now here you go." Jazmine giggled.

"Sorry Riley, I just never heard you speak like that. I know you're smart."

He smiled at that and nodded. "'Preciate it."

"But ya'll gon' be trippin' when I tell ya'll what he said after that. That nigga was _really_ soundin' like a genius. Hell, he_ is_ a genius."

Riley snorted. "I ain't no genius." Cindy punched him in his arm, making him laugh. "Yo' violent ass."

"Yo' smart ass! Don't sit here and get all humble on me." She then looked up at her friends in the front seat. "Okay, so they got to arguin' back and forth 'cause the teacher tried to play him, talkin' about some 'Very impressed, blah-blah-blah, that sounds like something your brother would say'. So that shit ticked Riley off, right?"

Both brothers snorted as Jazmine giggled. Cindy was so animated and hype when she explained things.

"So Riley challenged the nigga and was like 'yo, ask me some questions and I bet yo I'ma get 'em all right' or somethin' like that. So the teacher gon' pull a dumb one and ask Riley 'what's biology mean?'"

Riley rolled his eyes at the recollection.

"Tryna insult a nigga's intelligence and shit." He muttered. Huey rolled his eyes as well.

"Is he white?"

Riley looked at him with a raised brow. "Nigga, do you even have to ask?" Huey shrugged as Jazmine just looked at them. "He knew who you was though. You remember havin' Mr. Lewis?"

Huey shrugged again. "I don't know, I didn't really pay attention. He was probably one of those teachers I used to always correct."

Riley nodded as Jazmine giggled. That sounded about right.

"So anyways," Cindy went on, ignoring the brothers' conversation. "Riley was like, 'the study of life. c'mon with the real questions dude'. So the teacher asked him what was found in a nucleus and Riley said…he said…Riley, what you say?"

Riley snickered again at his best friend. Huey and Jazmine just looked at him expectantly. "I said the chromatin, nucleolus and the nuclear membrane."

"Right!" Cindy exclaimed right after. "So then Mr. Lewis ol' punk ass gon' do a little bitch move and ask Riley a question he ain't teach. So at first Riley was like 'Yo, we ain't learn that shit', and the teacher gon' smile 'cause he thought he got Riley, but when I saw Riley smile, I knew he was gon' show that nigga up! And…go'on head and tell 'em what you said Riley!" She yelled and shook her head as she thought of it again. Riley Freeman had all this knowledge and people still thought he was stupid? The nerve of them!

Riley sighed.

"Aiight."

And he told his brother and his brother's girl exactly what was said in the classroom. When he was finished, Jazmine stared at him with her jaw to the ground. He looked at Huey and noticed that _he_ was even surprised, since his eyebrow was raised up high. He looked at Cindy and saw her grinning happily.

"…Damn." Huey finally said after what seemed like forever.

"Damn, is right." Jazmine joined in, making Riley laugh hard. Cindy joined in too.

The couple in the front still remained speechless, but after about ten seconds, Huey finally turned to Jazmine.

"And I told ya'll to stop underestimating him." He said, turning around in his seat to face the front. Jazmine rolled her eyes.

Riley and Cindy just sat in the back the whole time, cheesing.

Despite the fact that Riley wanted to see Stacia, and Cindy wanted to see Caesar, they just couldn't stop smiling. That little episode in the classroom really uplifted their dull moods.

It wasn't long before the crew left the school parking lot to go home.

* * *

"_You wanna fuck with me? Okay. You wanna play rough? Okay. Say hello to my little friend!"_

Chilling in his theatre room in his PJs, Jin Taylor grinned hard. He loved gangster movies. His all time favorite was _The Godfather_, but he couldn't find it anywhere. So he decided to put in _Scarface _instead, his second favorite movie.

He looked down at the pistol Crystal dropped, just resting in his lap. Damn, he couldn't believe his luck. The dumbass police took the wrong person to jail, her dumbass dropped the gun on his side, and no one even stopped by to ask him any questions.

His grin turned sinister as he imagined what torture Crystal could be in at the moment. Stupid bitch, tried to kill him. She tried to kill_ Jin Taylor_? He hoped for her sake that she stayed in the jailhouse, because she was really better off there than on the streets. If she was out, he was going to have to hunt her down and kill her. He had to do it. She was a threat.

He sighed hard. That bitch could've just minded her own business, but nooo. She wanted to play the 'hero' or 'heroine' game. Dumbass.

He laughed darkly and stopped halfway through it. Hell, even he scared himself sometimes.

He just stopped thinking about all that shit and watched the movie, up until there was loud, obnoxious knock at the door. He scowled deeply and quickly got up. He threw the gat down on the couch and headed to his front door. If it was those damn Jehovah Witnesses, he was going to kick their asses. Besides, they were too late. It was like 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

When he finally stood in front of the door, he looked through the peephole and froze.

"Oh hell no." He muttered. He didn't want to invite whoever it was inside, but as they knocked again, he groaned and decided to just let the person in. It couldn't hurt, right?

He opened the door and met face to face with the last person he expected to see with a pissed off look.

His ex-wife.

He sighed and closed his eyes as he sensed her anger.

"Yes?" He asked in a dry tone. What was she doing there?

His ex-lover frowned and crossed her arms. Even though they didn't get along, he still found her to be extremely gorgeous, especially her rich dark skin tone. He was a sucker for dark chocolate, he couldn't deny that.

"It's about your daughter." She spat bitterly. He rolled his eyes. What did that little brat do _this _time? He loved her, but she was just so overdramatic sometimes.

"What, did you forget to give her an iPod touch or something?"

The woman glared hard, still standing in the doorway.

"No you jerk! She ran away!"

He rolled his eyes again. He just proved his point. She was overdramatic.

"She's just being a drama queen. She'll return within a day or so." He was so sure about that. The mother of his child gave him a weird look, cocking her head to the left.

"How are you so sure? You're never around to see her."

There she goes, starting another argument. He sighed hard.

"Weren't you the one who kicked me out?"

"Yes! But not out of her life!"

Jin was confused and irritated. "Well what do you want me to do?"

What the hell is up with this dude? She just stared at him, not believing what he just said. So he really _was_ one of those fathers. He just confirmed it!

"Y'know what, nothing." She said with a shake of her head. "I guess you will forever be a trifling ass nigga."

Jin snorted and rolled his eyes. "I can't be. I'm not black."

She glared at him irritably.

"Alright, fine. You will forever be a trifling ass mothafucka!" With that, she slammed the door hard, not waiting for him to say anything else.

Within the four walls in his home, he stared at the spot she was just at for a second. What the hell? She never sounded like that when she was upset. Sure, she cursed, but not so vulgarly.

Whatever. He rolled his eyes again before slamming the door shut and locking it. He knew exactly where Briana's dramatic tendencies came from; her damn mother.

* * *

"Boy…just explain to me what the hell is goin' on in my house." Robert Freeman pleaded in a soft, desperate voice. He remembered Huey saying he'd explain the hole in the wall thing to him when he got home, but what the hell was up with the smoke in the bathroom? He needed answers, now.

The both of them sat at the table in the kitchen. Riley would've been there, but he explained to his granddad that he wanted to check up on Stacia about an hour ago, so Huey drove him over there.

Huey sighed and shook his head.

"I don't know about the smoke you were telling me about, but Granddad," he began in a warning tone. "Now, when I tell you this, promise me you won't freak out."

Like that ever happened. Granddad rarely kept promises.

He waved his hand in the air dismissively. "Yeah, yeah sure." He responded in a tone that needed convincing. Huey rolled his eyes.

"Granddad, I'm warning you."

"Boy, just tell me!" Granddad grew impatient. His grandson sighed again, but listened all the same.

"Alright."

Ten minutes later,

Granddad's facial expression was so animated. His jaw nearly hit the floor, his eyes were popping out and his head was tilted to the side. If it hadn't been a serious subject, Huey would've found it funny.

"Now Granddad, don't freak out-"

"What the fuck!" The old man yelled, finally finding his voice. Huey's mouth clamped shut. He didn't want to say anything to upset his grandfather even more than he had. "Where is that crazy girl, now?"

Huey told her that she turned herself in and Granddad scoffed.

"Well, that's stupid."

Huey let a small smirk form on his lips. "Yeah, that's what I said."

Granddad didn't seem as riled up as Huey thought. That was a relief, but he still didn't want to upset the man. He knew he was still on edge about his house getting torn up by a little teenage girl.

They sat there for a while, neither of them saying a word. The vibe was awkward.

After a few minutes, Huey got up, which caused Granddad to look his way.

"Where you goin'?" he asked.

"Jazmine's."

With that response, the old man smiled, making his eldest grandson roll his eyes.

"Granddad." He groaned as his granddad snickered.

"Oh, hush boy." He playfully scolded him. "Just glad you and cutie pie hooked up. Shoot, I gave up hope a long time ago. I never thought you'd make a move."

Huey rolled his eyes again. "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

Granddad didn't say anything. He just laughed again. That was Huey's cue. It wasn't long before the laughter behind him was out of his earshot, since he was outside with the door slammed shut.

As of now, Jazmine and Cindy were in the living room chilling. The TV was on the Encore channel, in the middle of _'Waiting to Exhale'_. Cindy planned on staying over again, since neither of the girls' parents minded, so they were in their night clothes. Jazmine had on navy blue pajama pants with a yellow tank top. Cindy wore black basketball shorts and a white t-shirt. She had her hair in a long braid, done by Jazmine. She still had a hint of make up one; she was too lazy to wash it off.

Anyways, they were both sitting on the floor eating popcorn and not at all paying attention to the movie.

"Man, fuck that. He don't look better than Pooch Hall, though." Cindy commented. Jazmine rolled her eyes.

"No he doesn't. Now, Pooch Hall is cute, really cute, but I can't take someone named 'Pooch' seriously." Jazmine replied with a shrug. Cindy gave her a disapproving look.

Cindy waved her hands around in the air. "What? You mean to tell me his _name_ stoppin' you from thinkin' he look better than Trey Songz?"

Jazmine gave her friend a duh look. "Uh, yeah."

"Bitch you crazy!" Cindy yelled unnecessarily, kind of like Riley always did. Jazmine rolled her eyes at her crazy friend. "Pooch is sexy as hell!"

"Well, so is Trey!" Jaz countered, digging her hand in the popcorn bowl. Cindy rolled her eyes as well.

"Hell no! I mean, he fine too, but he don't look better than Pooch. Trey an R&B sexy flexy ass nigga, too."

Jazmine snorted after eating the popcorn. "You said he was sexy, admit it." She said pointing at her. Cindy sucked her teeth and crossed her arms.

"You know that's not what I meant. And I ain't even say he won't sexy. I said he ain't look better than Pooch."

Jazmine shrugged.

"Whatever. Neither one of them look better Mehcad Brooks." She pointed out. At the mention of that fine nigga, Cindy's eyes lit up.

"Girl! _Now_ we on the same track!" She exclaimed, as Jazmine giggled. "That's my husband right there!"

Jazmine playfully gasped. "Oh please! I'm pretty sure he belongs to me!" Cindy laughed in response.

"Girl no. You wouldn't leave Huey for him."

Jazmine snorted again and jerked her head back. "That's what you think."

Cindy cracked up and shook her head. Jazmine was so dumb.

"Whatever."

They went on talking about the attractive men in Hollywood. The knocking on the door cut the conversation short, though.

"I'll get it." Jazmine announced for no reason. What, did she think _Cindy_ was going to get up? Pssh.

She stood up and walked over to the door. When she opened it, there stood Huey. She smiled sweetly and gave him a much gentler hug than earlier. This time he returned it gratefully.

"Hey baby." She greeted him and leant forward to give him a quick kiss.

"Hey." He answered in a soft tone. She smiled at him again as he smiled back. His arms were wrapped around her waist and hers were wrapped around his neck. They looked so cute, and Cindy made sure they knew that.

"Aww, look at you niggas!" She shouted as she walked towards them. Damn, she always liked ruining moments.

Huey rolled his eyes and backed himself out of the loving embrace. Jazmine stepped back to let him in and closed the door behind him.

"You still here, huh?" He asked knowingly. Not that he didn't mind being around her, but he needed to talk with Jazmine in private.

Cindy smiled in response and headed to the stairs. Jazmine told her that she was going to tell Huey she loved him, so she just wanted to give them their privacy. Hopefully Huey didn't break her heart by telling her he didn't feel the same way, but she had a feeling that wasn't going to happen. They were lovey dovey enough already.

"Ya'll lemme know when I'm allowed to come back down, now." She joked, making Jazmine laugh a little.

They waited until they heard the door close upstairs before speaking. When they heard a click, that was their cue.

"Alright," Huey started, all of a sudden feeling the butterflies in his stomach. Jazmine waited for him to go on, boring her jade orbs into his. He had to avoid looking at those things. They were so hypnotizing.

"Why don't we sit down?" He asked suggestively. Jazmine didn't say anything, she just nodded and walked towards the couch, Huey in tow.

Once they sat on the couch across from the TV, Jazmine picked up the remote and put it on mute. She then turned to him, giving him her undivided attention. He gulped. This was the moment of truth.

He looked nervous, Jazmine could see it clearly. It was kind of odd seeing him in that state. He was always so straight with everything. Jazmine was nervous too, though. She wanted to be the one to tell him what was on her mind first, but he beat her to the punch, and she sure as hell wasn't about to stop him.

As they remained quiet, the atmosphere felt weird.

Huey didn't realize how difficult this was going to be. He thought he could just tell her and hope she was going to say the same thing, but it was so much more than that. _So_ much more.

He sighed again. He had to get this over with or else he'd never know how she'd feel. He was the male, so making the first move was kind of expected of him.

He took one of her dainty hands in his and lightly pressed into it. Jazmine looked down at their hands and then up at his face. She saw something she's never seen on him before. He looked so serious, and not the angry serious look that was usually plastered on his face. It was something different, but she couldn't pinpoint it.

"Look, Jazmine," He finally started up again. "There's something that I've been wanting to tell you, and I can't go another day without letting you know…" His voice trailed and he just stopped himself for a second. Jazmine anticipated what he was going to say, be he went back to silence again.

"What? Letting me know what?" She asked in a quiet tone. She really wanted to know. Huey seemed to be having a hard time saying whatever was on his mind. It had to be something serious.

Huey closed his eyes, trying to get himself together. Damn, all he had to say was three words, but he never thought three little words would ever be this hard for him to say!

Jazmine placed her other hand on his cheek as she noticed him struggling to say what he wanted to say. He opened his eyes slowly and gave her another one of those unexplainable, unreadable looks. She couldn't figure it out, but she smiled anyways, making him feel ten times better. He smiled back and sweetly kissed the palm of her hand, making her cheeks redden. He then took her hand off of his cheek and into his other hand.

"Okay," He softly let out and sighed again. "Jazmine, I'll just go ahead and say it." He sighed again as he looked into her eyes again. "I want to let you know that…even though you're a bit naïve and overly excited at times….I can't help but feel some type of way about you." He told her, feeling his cheeks heating up.

Jazmine smiled at his explanation and attempted to speak up, but he wasn't done yet.

"Jazmine," He closed his eyes again. "I understand if you don't feel the same way as I do, but I gotta let you know that I…I…I…"

She noticed him stuttering and she smiled at him again. It was so cute.

"You, what?" She egged on, in that sweet tone he loved so much.

He opened his eyes again and looked into her green orbs once more.

"Jazmine, I love you." He finally admitted, never taking his eyes off of her.

Jazmine was beyond stunned. That much was clear as her eyes grew ten times their normal size. Huey began to regret what he said as she stayed quiet for quite some time, but he wasn't leaving until she gave him a response.

He sighed again as embarrassment crept up on him. He was hoping this wasn't going to happen. Well, at least he didn't have to wonder anymore. He knew how she felt. Well, he thought he knew.

"Jazmine," He went on breaking the odd silence. "Please, say something."

She just kept staring at him as if she'd seen a ghost or something. Huey felt a sharp pang in his chest. Her expression seemed to say it all.

"Look, if you don't feel the same, that's alright with me-"

He would've went on, had her sweet lips not connected with his. Hmm, not what he expected, but that surely made him throw those doubts of his out the window.

The kiss was filled with so much passion, neither wanted it to end. That's when Huey felt it. He knew how she felt now. She didn't need to say a thing. She loved him too, and he couldn't have been happier.

Their hands were still connected, so Huey carefully placed hers on his shoulders before wrapping his around her waist. She fully threw her arms around his neck. He tilted his head to the right, kissing her deeper as she tilted hers the other way. This went on for a good minute, and pretty soon Jazmine's hands found their way to the back of his head, massaging his scalp tenderly. The feeling was indescribable to Huey and he couldn't help but slowly caress her lower back.

He felt his temperature rising, but he didn't want to go too far, so they eventually pulled back, his teeth pulling on her bottom lip.

Wow, that shit was sexy.

Jazmine almost leant in for seconds, but she felt like she would lose control if she did so. Her arms were still around his neck as his was around her waist. They stayed like that for a minute, and for a minute, they just simply stared at each other.

Next thing they knew, they were laughing, at both themselves and each other. They didn't even know why.

"So…I guess you feel the same way then." Huey knowingly stated. Jazmine slightly looked down and giggled. Huey just had this cute smile on his features. He didn't think it'd ever go away tonight.

"Yeah." Jazmine commenced, looking up again. She kissed him quickly this time. Of course he wanted more, but he didn't want to overdo it. She had the prettiest Colgate smile he'd ever seen. "I wanted to tell you today, too. And I won't go back on my word. I love you too, Huey."

Yes! He wanted her to say it, even though she just expressed it within that kiss. He needed total confirmation!

He was so happy that he laughed a little again. Jazmine laughed with him and finally put her arms down. Instead, she turned around in his arms and leant back in his chest. As she did so, he kissed her forehead tenderly, making her giggle once more.

"Cindy, you can come down now!" Jazmine yelled, catching Huey off guard. She didn't notice it, though.

For a second, Jazmine didn't think Cindy heard her, but when she heard a click and the opening of a door, she thought differently.

Before the girl came into view, Jazmine reached for the remote and turned the mute option off. All of a sudden she wasn't in the mood to watch _Waiting to Exhale_ anymore. She looked on the guide to see what else was on.

As Cindy reached the bottom step, she was shocked to see the couple on the couch looking at the television. They looked so happy, and Huey was actually smiling. Did they…?

She smirked as she realized why they were looking so satisfied. She was happy for them. They finally stopped the bullshit.

"Yo," She began and headed over to the long couch. "What's up?" She nosily asked.

Huey had his eyes locked on the TV, trying to avoid answering the girl, but Jazmine turned to her with a very bright expression. Huey knew she'd tell her, but he didn't care.

"Cindy," She said, sighing. She gave Cindy a look; a look only Cindy knew about. Cindy nodded and laughed a little.

"Man, I'm happy for ya'll. My niggas!" She exclaimed, resulting in some laughter from the both of them. Yes! Success! She made Huey laugh!

She sighed contently and leant back in her chair. That's when she noticed Jazmine changing the channel.

"Aye, what you doin'?"

Jazmine didn't say anything. She just turned to _Brown Sugar_. Cindy rolled her eyes playfully. Is this how Jazmine was going to do from now on? Turn to movies based on her feelings?

Not that she minded.

She didn't want to disturb the couple any longer, so she made an excuse to leave the room and went back upstairs again. She wanted to talk to Caesar anyways. What the hell is up with him ignoring her calls?

Meanwhile, still…at the hospital.

"Caesar! We don't want to go through with this again! You have school tomorrow and my shift is almost over!" The doctor yelled, losing his patience. All day, all _day_ this boy was acting like this. All he needed was a regular check up and two shots! _Two shots_! The doctor wasn't one to judge, but what was Caesar, five?

"NO! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!" Once again, Caesar kept shouting out rights he _thought_ he had. He was required to take this in order to go on to practice for the soccer team.

I know what ya'll are thinking. Soccer? That's so white!

But Caesar was an all around athlete. He loved all sports. He would try football, but he didn't like to mess up his dreads by putting on that damn helmet. Not that he was a pretty boy or anything, but he ain't play when it came to his hair.

"C'mon now, son! One stick of the needle and you'll be home free sooner than you think." The doctor reassured, but Caesar wasn't hearing it.

"NO!" Caesar yelled childishly and unnecessarily knocked over the tools on the countertop before running out of the room.

The doctor sighed hard and shook his head. "This is going to be a long night."

* * *

Damn Ceez, why you trippin'? LOL. And Riley a smart nigga, ain't he? Comment on that! lol

Last but not least, Jaz and Huey admitted their love for one another! Yaayyy! *Parties all night*

Okay, well ya'll know what to do next. Review!

And don't worry. Jin will get his real soon!


	22. Going Rouge

What's good nigga! What's _really_ good?

So okay, I didn't plan on waiting this long to post this, but school is definitely my first priority right now, so I had to put this aside for a minute, but here it goes! Ch. 22!

You know I love you guys! So of course I gotta show love to ya!

Miss Ace Thank You (Sheeee'sss baaaackk! lol), Cruella De 'Chelle, MzMinni3, jayjai107, MissG2020, Rivi2012, Jazavelli, keyks554, and last but not least, ButterflyEyes24! Still wonderin' where my other RODs are, but just like me, I guess they got a life too lol so I won't trip.

DISCLAIMER: BD AIN'T MINE!

So, this story has so many different scenes it's ridiculous lol but soon everyone will get together and the different scenes will come together. Then it'll be less confusing, and we can focus more on Huey & Jazmine! This chapter focuses more on getting the Jacksons their justice and turning in that Jin asshole.

I feel like I kinda rushed this because everytime I added something, I went right back to doing my work, so I didn't have enough time to organize my thoughts the way I wanted to. But uhh, I don't feel like going back and changing shit lol. Just read on. I promise next chapter will be better.

* * *

CHAPTER 22: GOING ROUGE

Man, why so many numbers?

Crystal had one hand on the phonebook and the other on her forehead. Her eyes were straining to see all the little numbers and names on the pages. This was sooo frustrating! She'd been sitting there on that couch for a good minute. Why did the name 'Tina Jackson' have to be so popular? There were at least fifteen of them within the Woodcrest area, but she didn't know where she lived. For all she knew, the woman could be living in Baltimore or Aberdeen and used the Marriott hotel in Woodcrest as her private place to get busy.

She sighed hard as she stared at the many numbers and finally reached over on the coffee table for a pen and a pad. She had to reach the woman as soon as possible, so there was only one thing left to do.

She shook her head as she wrote down the first 'Tina Jackson' number and dialed it on her phone. The phone rang for a minute before someone picked up.

"Hello?" It sounded like a kid on the phone. Crystal sighed a little. She didn't want to deal with children right then, no matter how adorable they were.

"Look, sweetie is your mom home?" She asked in the most polite way she could at the moment. Then she heard the kid smack their teeth.

"Bitch, what make you think I'm a fuckin' child? I'm twenty five years ol' and I will hunt yo' ignorant ass down and bu-"

Crystal hung up quick as hell. Okay, that wasn't the right number.

She sighed again and rubbed her eyes. It was getting late, but she didn't want to give up. She couldn't handle the fact that Jin was just out there living it up, and the police weren't doing shit! Even after she told them what happened, she hasn't heard anything about him. This was stupid!

She looked in the phonebook and crossed out the first Tina before moving on to the second. When she dialed it, she rolled her eyes at the person on the other line.

"Hola?"

What? That doesn't even make sense! Tina Jackson is a black name, not a Hispanic one!

Without answering, she hung up and groaned loudly. This was going to be a long ass night!

* * *

Cindy was knocked out in Jazmine's room. She gave up calling Caesar and just called it a night. It was around 10:00 PM, so it was unusual for her to sleep at such an 'early' time, but she wanted to wake up early so she could try looking pretty again. She didn't like to admit it, but she actually liked it.

Huey and Jazmine were downstairs still hugged up on each other on the couch. Jazmine took off her slippers a while ago and had her legs curled under her. She knew her knees would hurt, but she didn't care. She was just so happy.

Huey was happy too, but he was getting rather sleepy. The warmth emanating from Jazmine gave him comfort. He had to leave though.

He stifled a yawn and tapped her shoulder lightly, making her giggle.

"Yeesss…" She drew out in a quiet tone. He smiled and kissed her cheek, making her turn crimson.

"I gotta go. It's getting late." He whispered much to her disappointment. She understood though.

"Okay." They stood up together and walked over to the door.

"So…I love you!" Jazmine blurted as he opened the door. He turned around with a raised brow and a light smile.

"I love you, too."God, it felt so good to say that!

She smiled back and hugged him. He hugged back and kissed her tenderly.

"See you in the morning." Jazmine told him after they pulled back. He just gave her a cute smile and walked out the door. She waited until he walked over to his place and closed the door before slamming hers shut. She rested her back against it and squealed happily.

She couldn't believe it! They finally told each other how they felt, and it felt good! She was so relieved when Huey told her he loved her first. She was shocked, too. She knew he really liked her, but she wasn't sure if he loved her or not. Thank God he did.

She hummed happily as she cleaned up the mess in the living room. After doing so, she turned the TV and the lights off and headed upstairs. That's when she thought of something.

Her parents were here all that time, yet they didn't even attempt to go downstairs. Hmm. She wondered what it would've been like had they found her and Huey cuddled up on the couch.

She knew her daddy would trip.

* * *

Huey casually walked into the living room and plopped down on the couch where he planned on sleeping. Riley was in the kitchen when he heard the motions of his brother, causing him to turn around. He smirked and grabbed his plate of soul food and his orange juice (the right one this time) before maneuvering into the living room with his big brother.

"Aye nigga," He greeted as he sat down on the loveseat.

"Hey." Huey greeted back as he rested the back of his head on the couch. He started to close his eyes, but he had a feeling Riley wanted to talk to him. "What's up?"

Riley's smirk turned into a smile. "I should be askin' you that. Granddad told me you went over to Jaz's."

Huey nodded in response. He couldn't hold back that small smile as he tried avoiding eye contact with his younger sibling.

Riley studied him carefully. Something was different about him. He looked less stoic and more…satisfied, content…happy even. This dude was smiling out of the blue…what was up?

"Nigga, what you smilin' fo'?" He asked before digging into the greens on his plate. "Damn, this shit good."

Huey didn't answer him right away. He thought back on what happened a few hours ago. They both confessed their love and he couldn't have been any happier. Unnoticeably, his smile grew a little, making both of Riley's eyebrows meet up with his hairline.

_Okay, this nigga freakin' me out._ He thought.

"Today was just…a good day." Huey let out in a soft, tired tone. He yawned and reached down to take his shoes off. He still had his jeans on, and inwardly cursed as he realized he had to go all the way upstairs to change. Normally he wouldn't have been so freaking lazy, but today was different. He just wanted to sleep now so he'd hurry up and see the love of his life the next day.

Riley stared blankly at his brother for a second. Then, a thought popped in his head and he snickered, causing Huey to turn towards him.

"Huey…man, tell me you didn't…"

Huey looked at him confusedly. "…What?"

Riley shook his head. Huey wanted to play dumb, but that shit won't even necessary.

Riley brought his voice down to a hushed-whisper, trying not to attract any attention to Granddad, who was upstairs 'supposedly' sleeping. He leant forward, almost forgetting there was food on his lap.

"Look, did you or did you not hit?"

Huey's eyes grew the size of baseballs and he wished he had the strength to hit his brother upside the head. Riley noticed his brother's flushed expression and held his hands up in defense.

"I'm not even playin' man. I'm bein' dead serious. I wanna know whether my brother gettin' some or not so I could give him some tips-"

"Riley!" Huey interrupted in a hushed-whisper as well. "I don't need any tips on sex, thank you. And no, I didn't 'hit'." He concluded using air quotes. Riley's smile turned right back into a smirk.

"Don't need sex tips? Nigga, you ain't never had sex before. How you know what to do?" Riley asked as Huey let out an exasperated sigh. He didn't feel like talking about this.

"Riley, did you ask for tips the first time?" He said, giving his brother the brow. They both knew damn well he didn't ask for tips. He just went along and did it.

Riley blinked and tilted his head in thought. Huey rolled his eyes.

"…Well, no…"

"Alright then."

There was a slight pause.

"So…no sex?"

Huey sighed hard. "No sex."

"…Not even oral?"

"No!" Huey almost yelled as his cheeks started to burn. Riley nodded and there was another slight pause.

"…So ya'll ain't even fuck around?"

Huey groaned irritably. "Riley, what part of 'no' do you not understand? Jaz and I didn't have any type of sexual relations!" He exclaimed a little too loudly. After that outburst, he expected Granddad to butt in, but no sound was heard, so he just didn't worry about it.

Riley sucked his teeth at the response. "Then what the hell were you smilin' for?" He sounded irritated, making his big bro snort amusedly. Riley wanted to know. He's never seen his brother so content.

As Huey looked at his brother, he contemplated on whether he should tell his brother now or tomorrow. He just wanted to sleep and he figured if he told Riley now, he'd bug him all night.

He sighed a little.

"If I tell you, will you promise not to worry me and let me sleep?" He inquired seriously. Riley was really interested now.

"Yeah, whateva nigga." He uncaringly replied with a shrug. Huey shook his head firmly.

"No. Make it sincere, because I don't wanna have to drop kick you if you're lying." Riley snorted in response and rolled his eyes. He put his right hand in the air and put his left one over his heart.

"Fine. I promise I won't worry you about it." His voice dripped with sarcasm, but Huey was too sleepy to argue. He wouldn't have a problem whooping his ass if he failed to comply with his wishes though.

"Okay," He started, standing up. He needed his PJs on before he went to bed. "I told Jaz I loved her and she said it back."

Riley jumped, causing the roll on his plate to hit the ground. He looked down and groaned irritably. "Fuck!" Huey shook his head as he turned to head to the stairs.

Riley picked up the piece of bread and set his plate on the coffee table. He hurriedly walked over to his brother.

"Nigga, where you goin'?" He asked with a gigantic grin all of a sudden. Huey looked back and shook his head with a light smirk. He turned back around and started up the stairs.

"What did I say, Riley?"

He heard him utter something before yelling out, "Aiight, tomorrow nigga. I'll let you sleep for now."

"That's all I ask." Huey replied as he was halfway up.

Riley smiled and finally threw the ruined bread in the trashcan. He was genuinely happy for his brother for finally finding love in his life. He was getting rather tired of the 'lonely' Huey.

He went back to his seat, but not before pulling out his cell phone.

* * *

"_You are a non mothaf****n' factor, bitch!"_

_*Fight breaks out*_

Stacia laughed half-heartedly at the scene on the Basketball Wives show. Those rich women were so out of control it didn't make no sense!

Want to know what else made 'no sense'?

The fact that it was 11:30 at night and she _still_ hadn't been able to fall asleep. What the hell was up with that?

She sighed as she continued watching the most entertaining thing she'd seen all day. She drew her eyebrows together as she felt her leg vibrating and quickly realized it was her phone. She had her phone next to her left leg, so she picked it up and saw a text from someone very special. She smiled as she read it.

_Hey baby. Just checkin' on you. You better get some sleep tonight. I don't want you fallin' asleep on me tomorrow in the middle of the day. Esco_

She laughed aloud and mentally replied with a 'yeah right'. Until she had definite answers and was absolutely sure the crook would be done away with, she wouldn't be sleeping very well for a good minute.

It was funny. Though she was currently an insomniac, she'd crash in the middle of the day, but she wouldn't get the proper rest. At the moment, night time was her best friend. She was still tired as hell, but she could not go to sleep. It was weird and hella frustrating. She hated how her mind and body reacted to situations like these. Damnit, why couldn't she just cry herself to sleep like normal people did?

She sighed and replied to the text before focusing her attention to 'Reality TV'.

* * *

_I'm fine babe. Don't worry too much. I love _

Riley smiled at the text and shook his head.

_Love you too. Esco_

He sent the text and went back to eating the last bit of greens on his plate. When she didn't respond, he shrugged and picked up the phone.

_Sleep better be the reason you ain't respondin' back. Esco_

He was joking for the most part, but really, he wanted her to go to sleep. This 'not sleeping' shit was so unhealthy.

He placed the phone on his lap and bit into the new roll on his plate. A minute later his phone vibrated and he put his plate on the coffee table again.

_Shut up…lls. I'm watching TV, boo. Everything doesn't revolve around you. Ha, that rhymed. SMJ_

He laughed and playfully rolled his eyes. She was so damn goofy.

_Lls, you 'bout goofy as hell, but I love you anyways. I'm stoppin' by tomorrow and your eyes better not be touchin' your damn jaw. That would be really unattractive. Esco_

A few minutes later, he received another text from his girl.

_Shut ya ass up. Steady talkin' shit, lmao. But I love you, too. Now let me watch my TV show in PEACE! :] SMJ_

He smirked and stood up with his empty plate and his phone. He walked over to the trashcan in the kitchen and threw the plate and plastic fork away before sitting back down in the living room.

"What you so happy about?" Huey's voice shocked him a little. He looked to his right to see his big brother staring at him with a blank look, carrying his chocolate colored comforter. Riley noticed him wearing his light blue pajamas and all he could think was '_this nigga look like a big ass kid_'. He shrugged and looked back down at the phone, his fingers punching in the letters.

"Just talkin' to Stacia." He admitted and smiled as he sent off his reply.

_Lmao. Oh so that's how it is? I thought you was my baby. Now you ignorin' me? HOW DARE YOU!_

_So…is 4:00 aiight for tomorrow? Esco_

They could play like that all day long. He would never mind and neither would she. They were just two silly people all alone, but together, they were ridiculous. If anyone else felt the need to voice their opinion on that, then as the famous lead rapper of the Lethal Interjection Crew, Thugnificent, would say, 'Eat a dick, nigga!'.

*Shrugs* I didn't make the saying up.

Huey nodded and walked over to his spot to lie down. Riley had the TV on, and normally it was a huge distraction, but Huey's mind was totally submerged in the thoughts of Jazmine. He turned his body so his back was facing to TV and pulled the cover over his head. A few minutes later, he was fast asleep, dreaming about the love of his life.

* * *

"_Hello. This is the Jackson Residence. Unfortunately, we are unavailable to take your call right now. If you would please leave a message, we'll get back with you momentarily. Have a nice day!"_

"UUUUGGHH!" Crystal groaned loudly, shaking her fists in the air. That was the last 'Tina' number! This had gone on for an hour and still no progress. Damn, that voice wasn't even a woman's voice, so she didn't know if that was the 'Tina' she was looking for. It was possible, but she had no patience anymore to find out.

She dropped the phone uncaringly on the sofa and harshly laid back. She was so frustrated about this entire thing. She just wanted it to be over. If Jin didn't have so much power, he'd be in prison right now. It also pissed her off how slow the police were. They know who did it, just arrest the guy!

She rubbed her eyes, realizing just how tired she was. She looked to the DVD player for the time that read '12:23'. She wasn't one to sleep late, (well, not anymore), so she was damn near exhausted. She had work in the morning, but she also needed to work on getting the Jacksons the justice they needed.

"Trifling ass nigga." She muttered, speaking of Jin, and stood up to go upstairs. She really did hate him.

* * *

"Trifling ass nigga." The woman said aloud with a shake of her head. She turned the TV and the lamp beside her bed off before hopping into the bed. All day she couldn't keep her mind off of Briana and that sorry excuse of a father of hers. If he was a real nigga, he'd claim his daughter and wouldn't hesitate to try to find her. He'd want some answers, how this whole thing came about. But he wasn't a real nigga, so she didn't expect much. She at least wanted him to care. He was just too trifling!

And how dare he say 'I can't be, I'm not black,'? He sure wants to _be_ black though, considering the fact that he sounds black, dresses black, and is attracted to black women. He enjoys black movies and black shows and listens to black music, so really? He just wanted to aggravate her even further for some reason. Ever since the day she broke it off with him, he's been a real ass. She didn't get it!

She didn't ask for friendship, she just wanted the arguing to cease. They could just get along, but every time they were together, it was like a freaking train wreck! They both had poor communication skills, and for the sake of their daughter, they should've worked on that. That's probably the reason Briana left. If that was the case, then it probably _was _partly her fault. Briana probably said it wasn't to make her feel better, but she wasn't stupid. Her own daughter was going through something and she didn't even know it.

She closed her eyes, engulfed in her thoughts and silently cried herself to sleep. She felt so bad. Her daughter was out there somewhere, probably living on the streets or something. She missed her so much.

* * *

The next day,

She heard sounds all around her…some voices familiar, some unfamiliar. She had no idea where she was. Was she dead? Was she in Heaven?

Of course not. God wouldn't allow such a low-life into the Gates of eternal happiness! More like the Gates of Hell.

She tried to move a little, or do something, but quickly found it impossible. Okay, she _was_ dead, right? Like, she should be able to move around, or walk through walls or _something_!

But she was motionless.

Then she felt the pain hit her. Her side throbbed something terrible and her body felt so sore. She couldn't figure out why she felt such pain if she wasn't living, and she couldn't remember how her body had been so banged up.

Once she heard a deep, smooth voice, her mind screamed. That…was her husband! She wanted to call him, but she couldn't move her lips. She had so many questions! Like why is she immobile, why is he just standing there, not panicking, and where is she?

What the hell was going on? She couldn't open her eyes, she couldn't talk, she couldn't move! She was beginning to panic.

Then she heard another voice. The voice of an adolescent female speaking with great literacy. She sounded so educated and sophisticated. It took her a couple of seconds to realize exactly who it was.

Her daughter.

Mentally, her eyes widened. She couldn't even remember her daughter's distinct voice right away! What? Now you KNOW the family's having problems!

She soon realized that both recognizable voices sounded urgent. She hoped they weren't arguing, but she wouldn't know if she kept thinking about herself would she? So she listened. What the hell else could she do?

"_Why is she not up yet?"_

"_Is she dead!"_

"_Please don't tell me I gotta kill this ni-"_

"_Dad, calm down!"_

"_Sir, Ma'am! She's fine! It's a new medicine we've worked on her. It increases the healing, but it has weird effects."_

"_Like?"_

"_Ma'am, please!"_

"…_Did he just yell at me?"_

"_Stacia…"_

"_Dad, I'm just sayin'. He's messin' with the wrong one."_

There's a slight pause.

"_My apologies, ma'am."_

"_That's right."_

If she could, she would've laughed. Her daughter knew how to handle her own.

"_Y-yeah, but as I was saying…the medicine's new. It has weird effects, such as feeling pain, waking up, but not being about to function,"_

So that explains it.

"_weakening of vision or hearing, craving unhealthy foods…and something…else…"_

"_Something else, huh?"_

Perfect. So he just gave her a drug he didn't know too much about? That was legal.

_Not_!

So apparently her husband and her daughter were talking to the doctor about her health situation.

She mentally cried, if that was even possible. She didn't know what was going on with her or why she was in the hospital. The last thing she remembered was…was…

She couldn't remember!

If this motionless thing was God's way of deciding whether or not she should stay or go, she'd rather him hurry up and pick an option. She was having a mental breakdown. This was beyond scary to her.

It was a while before the talking stopped. Then, after what seemed like a few minutes (she couldn't tell), she heard something from her beautiful daughter confirming that she was still there.

"_Is she…crying?"_

* * *

Laying down in his bed under the covers was Caesar, waiting for the clock to read 6:20. He always got ready at that time, and since he woke up before the alarm, he decided to just relax a bit. It was 6:12, so he had a little bit of time to relax in his queen sized bed. He frowned as he felt the sore on his legs.

Stupid doctor and his stupid needles! He didn't have to give Caesar two shots! What was the point?

So, eventually a few doctors found Caesar in the cafeteria downstairs, trying to hide behind an old white woman in a brown trench coat. Not exactly knowing why a tall black man was all up on her, she screamed and panicked and hit him upside the head with her pocketbook. So, that quickly gave away his position.

He pouted once again at the recollection. That shit hurt! And why did the needles have to look so long?

He reached over on his nightstand to retrieve his phone and found that he had twelve missed calls. His eyes widened a little. Damn. Whoever it was must be some kinda pissed at him right now. Blowing his phone up like that, it had to be an emergency.

He checked his missed calls and texts, all of them belonging to Cindy. That's when he felt his stomach coil. He couldn't understand it, but it just made him feel really bad. If it were anyone else, he probably wouldn't have felt as bad as he did. She was his best friend after all, other than Huey, and a girl. He's learned long ago that woman get upset too easily, too, and he hated it when she was mad at him.

"Shit." He cursed with a shake of his head. He wanted to call her, but because of the laziness taking over him at the moment, he decided to wait on that, or wait until he met up with her at school.

Funny thing is…she probably wouldn't even want to talk to him.

* * *

"Aye Huey," The younger sibling called his big brother as he put on his black skully. It was chillier than usual outside. He had his black gloves on, too. If he was back in middle school, he wouldn't even think about wearing shit like that, because he'd think it was uncool. Now, he'd rock that shit, and other niggas would bite off of him. Plus, he won't tryna get sick!

"Yeah?" Came the response as Huey poured the hot tea into a stainless steel thermos. As Riley looked back, he thought about bringing one of his own, but he didn't want to carry too much.

"You seen my biology book?"

Huey glanced up at him for a second with a smirk before looking back down.

"No. Why bring it? You don't need it."

Riley grinned wide as he thought about the day before.

"Yeah, well I just don't wanna show the nigga up too much." He snickered right after that, making Huey playfully roll his eyes.

"Of course not." He responded as he stopped pouring the tea and twisted the cap on. They were waiting on Jazmine and Cindy to come over this time, so they went back into the living room to sit. It was quiet for a minute, with the exception of a few sips from Huey's drink.

That's when Riley decided it was time to talk.

He looked at his big brother and tried hard not to smile.

"Son…" he began, causing Huey to look at him expectantly. Riley's lips spread wide, and he sort of mentally cursed himself. "…You boo lovin' now, huh?"

Huey wanted to smile, but rolled his eyes instead, making Riley lose it. He had to laugh. Huey's expressions were always funny.

"Riley,"

"No nigga!" he exclaimed, not so loudly. Granddad was always trippin' about loud noises in the morning. "I promised you I won't gon' talk about it last night, but that shit done passed. Now it's time for us to talk about it."

Huey leant back in his seat a little, setting the thermos down on the table. "What's there to talk about?" He began, a little annoyed already. Not that Riley cared. "I said I loved her, she said she loved me. That was it."

Riley rolled his eyes. Because they both knew that was most definitely _not it_. He studied his brother's facial expression, and let another smile form.

"You kissed her too, didn't you?" He knowingly inquired. Huey raised his brow and gave him a 'duh' look.

"Uh, yeah. Don't we always?"

Riley snickered again. "Naw man, you know that ain't what I meant." Huey still had that look on his face, trying to ignore that fact that Riley was right. Riley wasn't stupid though. He leant forward as if he was about to tell him a deep, dark secret.

"Ya'll had one of those sexy ass kisses, huh? No homo, nigga." He quickly added that after nearly whispering the first part. Hell, he won't gay.

Huey rolled his eyes, but blushed all the same. "What does it matter?"

"YOU DID!" Riley exclaimed inconsiderately. He forgot about his granddad upstairs.

"Shut up!" Huey shushed him. Riley realized his mistake and uttered a 'my bad'.

"But son, ya'll kissed like that? Be honest now. I'm ya brother." Riley made hand gestures while he was talking. It was crazy! Huey's never been in love like this before. Riley was so happy for him, but he didn't want to admit it all out in the open.

Huey sighed in relief as he heard the door knock. Riley groaned as they both stood up.

"We ain't finished with this conversation."

Huey shrugged and walked over to the door while Riley went in the kitchen to get something to drink real quick.

He opened the door and was greeted by the two ladies he's known since he was in the fifth grade. Jazmine had on a red hoodie with a charcoal grey peacoat on top, black skinny jeans, and brown Ugg boots. She wore her curly locks down and put on red gloves and a black skully, just like Riley's except it was more girly. Cindy wore her black Victoria Secret sweatpants, brown Ugg boots, her green sweater and her black leather jacket. They both looked very comfortable.

Anyways, Jazmine had a sweet, warm smile on her features, while Cindy had on a playful smirk. Huey wanted to roll his eyes, but fought it. Cindy was a little too happy about the two of them.

"What up, dude!" Cindy bellowed, but quickly apologized as both brothers shushed her.

She shrugged and walked in, going in the kitchen with Riley.

Before Huey let his girl in, he leant down to give her a sweet kiss on the lips.

"Hey." He whispered against her lips, making hers widen. Her blush was so deep it was almost as red as her hoodie.

"Hey." She whispered back before capturing his lips with hers again. It didn't last long, but oh how they wanted it too.

They pulled back and stared into each other's eyes for awhile, before,

"Aye, close that fuckin' door, lovestruck nigga!"

Riley screamed from the living room. Huey had almost forgotten she was outside. She giggled and walked inside before closing it behind her. Once they both reached the kitchen, so Huey could grab the keys, they were met with two large grins. Huey rolled his eyes again while Jazmine giggled.

He wondered how today would turn out.

* * *

"Director! We need to catch this guy! He's a huge threat!" The red-head exclaimed, using hand gestures.

"Sorry Jack, but unfortunately some people are_ above_ the law." The old white man replied with a tone that read 'who cares?'.

Agent Jack Flowers furrowed his brow and secretly loathed the man in front of him. He just stood there angrily as he watched the man casually get up from his chair and extend his hand. Jack guessed he was expecting a handshake, but he didn't want to extend his. The Director shrugged and pulled his hand back before turning around to leave.

"Okay. Have a good weekend and uh, no going rouge…again." He announced before his departure. After he left, Jack made his decision.

"I'm going rouge."

* * *

"Alright, get out!" The rude, obnoxious female Physical Education teacher exclaimed to the girls in the locker room. Cindy was talking to Jazmine, completely ignoring the teacher. The only reason Jazmine was there was because she was taking advanced PE. She wanted to work out and stay in shape. Cindy did too, but she was required to take PE until her junior year.

"Hey," Jaz started as she pulled her hoodie over her head. "I was thinking about stopping by the hospital to see how Stacia and her family's doing. You want to come?"

Cindy was sitting on the bench, waiting on Jaz to hurry up so they could get to lunch. She shrugged.

"Why not? She was there for me."

Jaz smiled and threw her backpack on her back.

"I said get out!" The teacher yelled again. What was her problem?

"We leavin'! Bitch." Cindy yelled the first part but muttered the second one, making Jaz laugh hard and shake her head. Cindy got up and rolled her eyes, making sure the woman saw her before they both walked out.

"I can't stand that bitch! Always dick ridin'!" Cindy nearly shouted as the two walked down the hallway.

Jazmine looked at her friend sideways a bit. Cindy was acting weird. Normally she wouldn't have been as bothered by the teacher. Sure, she'd call her a bitch from time to time, but she wasn't seriously pissed off. Something must be going on with her.

"Cin, are you okay?" Jazmine asked worriedly as she studied her face. Cindy turned to her and sighed.

"I'm fine." She answered unconvincingly.

There was a pause.

"You sure?"

"Look!" Cindy stopped walking and turned to Jazmine, shocking her. She noticed this and toned down a bit. "I'm fine, okay? Just don't worry too much."

Jazmine nodded. They both started walking again, but silence fell upon them the whole time. Jazmine wasn't stupid. She knew her friend all too well. She was clearly upset, and she was going to get to the bottom of it.

Later though.

When they walked into the cafeteria, they spotted the boys talking to Lamaar at their usual table. Neither of them had food. Jazmine's guess was that they wanted to either wait on her and Cindy, or they were fasting.

The first option sounded about right.

Once again in silence, the girls walked side by side until they reached the boys. Huey sat next to Caesar and Riley and Lamaar sat across from them. Cindy quietly took her seat next to Lamaar and tried hard to avoid Caesar. He did so, too. He knew she was pissed at him.

There were two more chairs left, but Jazmine wanted to be funny. So she sat right on Huey's lap, stopping the boys' conversation. Lamaar and Caesar stared at Jazmine with their eyes wide and mouths open while Riley tried his best not to laugh. Cindy would've joined Riley, had she not been in a crappy mood. When she looked towards Caesar, she rolled her eyes and averted them quickly. She didn't even feel like seeing his face.

Huey rolled his eyes, pretending not to like it. Hell, he loved it, but this was neither the place nor the time.

"Jazmine, get up." He dryly commanded. Jazmine wasn't fazed. She turned her head to him and smiled mischievously.

"Why?" She asked in an innocent tone that contradicted her facial expression. She then playfully rolled her butt on top of him, making the boys laugh. "You like it."

Huey glared at her for making him blush and get a little excited. What she did just now felt good, but he wasn't about to let it show.

"Jazmine, get up." He repeated sternly. Jazmine just giggled and kissed his cheek before taking her seat next to him.

"Aw, sorry baby. I was just playing around." She assured with an amused look. He rolled his eyes again as everyone but Cindy laughed.

Okay, she was really started to make him worry, and he didn't worry about her much.

"Cindy," he said, getting her to look at him. She looked so irritated. "Somethin' wrong?"

She shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Just not feelin' today." She half-lied. No one really cared for Tuesdays, but that's not the real reason she was feeling down and he knew it. He didn't want to pressure her into telling him what was up. He wasn't the one she confided in. That was left up to everyone else.

"Oh." Was all he said.

Riley changed the subject as he sensed the atmosphere turning awkward.

"Uh…a nigga starvin'. Let's go!"

He ain't have to tell them twice.

As everyone got up, Caesar finally looked Cindy's way. She looked so dull, and that made him feel really bad.

The crew walked ahead with Cindy and Caesar in tow. Huey and Jazmine were talking to each other and so were Riley and Lamaar. Cindy and Caesar, though? They didn't say a word. They just looked around the room like they were looking for something.

Approaching the line, Caesar turned to Cindy again, but she didn't pay attention. She was looking ahead, silently eager to get her food and sit down.

He felt like all this awkwardness was unnecessary. This quiet shit wasn't like him at all. He was always one to speak his mind. So he decided to make a move.

Cindy was frozen solid as she felt a pair of warm lips connect with her cheek. Her eyes grew once she realized who it was and she gazed in his direction all of a sudden.

"C-Ceez?" She quietly asked in a low gentle tone. He smiled at her with those pretty white teeth. She still couldn't believe he did that, so she just stared at him wordlessly.

He grabbed her left hand and brought it up inches from his face. If it was possible, Cindy's eyes grew wider and a deep red blush stained her cheeks. She looked around frantically, wondering if anyone noticed what was going on, but they were just ahead, waiting to get their food.

She looked back at him nervously, anticipating his next move. What he did next made her forget she was even mad at him.

He kissed her hand sweetly and looked right into her ocean blue orbs.

"I'm sorry." Was all he said. They both knew what he was sorry for, so no explanation was needed.

Not knowing what else to do, she just nodded and gradually removed her hand from his grasp. As she turned back around to face forward, she felt her stomach rumble, and not because she was hungry.

All the while, a faint smile played upon Caesar's lips. Pretty soon, the crew and Lamaar grabbed their food and took their seats. Just like before Caesar and Cindy didn't say much, but the atmosphere was a bit more refreshing.

After lunch was over, they were the first to leave. This caused the rest of the group to raise their 'Huey' brows.

"What's with him?"

"What's with her?"

Huey and Jazmine asked at the same time. Riley and Lamaar looked at them and shrugged before getting up.

"Don't know, but niggas got a class to go to." Riley replied.

"Yep. Mrs. Blevins don't play." Lamaar said and laughed as he recalled some crazy event happening in that class. Riley knew exactly why he was laughing and joined him. They said their goodbyes to the couple and walked off.

Jazmine looked at Huey and before he could say or do anything, she kissed him quickly on the lips. He drew his eyebrows together, as he was caught off guard. She smiled at his countenance.

"You mind warning me next time?" he asked in mock irritation. She giggled and got up with him to head to their lockers.

"Whatever, you like it." She informed him as if he didn't know. He rolled his eyes and wrapped a protective arm around her while they kept walking.

* * *

No way was she leaving the room, now! Not too long ago, she just witnessed her mother crying. That indicated that she was fine. She was so worried about her. The woman hadn't awoken since the day she was admitted. She still wasn't up, physically anyways, but she knew she'd be okay.

She thought about what the doctor had said about the side effects. Maybe she was crying because she was freaked out about not being able to move around or talk. Stacia cringed as she imagined how that would feel. She would literally be scared to death.

She sighed and walked over to her mom, giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Mom," she began talking, whether or not her mom could hear her. "I know we're not the closest, and I know you feel like I don't care about you or want to have anything to do with you…but I still love you. If you can hear me, know that my love for you will never die, just because you're my mother."

She paused as she felt her eyes watering.

"Um…even if you do the unspeakable, I might even still love you because of the fact that you're my mother." She stopped again as she tried gathering up her thoughts and calming her nerves.

She didn't even notice her father standing in the doorway behind her.

"I…I just want you to know that…I did feel bitter about you and dad not being there most of the time, but we can change that if we start talking and getting together again."

Anton felt a tug on his heart and he shook his head.

Stacia stroked her mom's hair as she continued to talk to her. She changed the subject to diminish the dark cloud over her head.

"Guess what?" she asked as if it was her best friend she was talking to. "I'm still making straight As in school. And I even encouraged my boyfriend, Riley, to make good grades. Now he's making As and Bs. He's really smart, but you wouldn't have guessed it at a first glance."

She laughed a little, still stroking her mom's hair. Her dad just stared at her, waiting for her to realize he was there. He was also pretty impressed with his daughter. He knew she was bright, but who knew she'd influence someone like Riley to make good grades?

"Anyways…when you wake up, just know that we are going to be a family again. I'm determined to make it happen."

With that, she kissed her mom's forehead again and turned around to find her dad looking at her sadly. She jumped in shock and blushed in embarrassment. He noticed and smiled, sadly of course.

"So, how's she doin'?" He asked, although he knew she had no idea. She shrugged timidly and walked away from her mother, back to her seat.

He watched as she did so, and shook his head. There was something he needed to tell her. So he walked over to her, knowing he'd surprise her as he sat beside her. She stared at him in silence, anticipating what he was going to say or do.

He sighed and looked right at her.

"How ya doin'?" He asked like this was an everyday conversation. Stacia raised an arched brow.

"Fine." She drew out bemusedly, trying to turn her attention to the TV again. She knew he heard everything he said, so she just wanted to avoid him for a minute.

As she pretended to pay attention to the screen, her father shifted uncomfortably beside her and acted like he was looking for something in the room. The tension was thick, so thick. It was silent for awhile, but then Stacia got up.

"I'll be back." Was all she said before she left the room. Anton watched as she did and groaned when she was out of sight. He leant back in the chair and closed his eyes. He was so close to having a real conversation with her, but it felt weird. He knew he'd have to step out of his comfort zone in order to get things straight, but it was scary.

He mentally scoffed at himself. A grown ass man like him, afraid of what his _daughter_, the person he helped give life to, would say if he tried getting to know her. True, he was a man, but when he tried to communicate with his family, he just felt helpless.

He shook his head trying to rid the thoughts and focus on the fact that his wife was alive. He could never explain the relief that washed over him as he saw her cry. She was responding to something, so she wasn't gone.

He had quite a few things to take care of. First, he had to get right with his family. Next, he had to convince his wife to talk. Then, he had to put the bitch nigga in the State Pen. As soon as Mrs. Jackson would be released, he'd get right down to it.

Meanwhile, Stacia was downstairs in the cafeteria again. This had to be like the twentieth time since she's been there. She knew it wasn't healthy, but she didn't care. She just hoped she wouldn't get big. After all, she _did_ have a fast metabolism.

She shook her head as she bit into the chocolate Hershey's candy bar. She knew Riley would trip when he'd stop by. It's not as if she wanted to do it, she just didn't know how to cope. Mom was fine, okay, but her family was still broken and the man was still loose. In her mind, she had lots to think about. She hadn't been in school for two days either, and she had perfect attendance! She didn't want to fail after the fifth day, but it didn't seem like her mom would leave any time soon, and she would not allow herself to show up at school in her condition. Everyone would look at her sideways and shit while she walked around in sweatpants and no makeup. She didn't necessarily care about what others thought, but she always kept herself looking nice, and she didn't like it when people assumed she wasn't alright because of her change of appearance. It was annoying. So in order to avoid all that, she just didn't go.

She missed everyone though. They haven't really stopped by, only Riley. At first she was upset about it, finally knowing how Cindy felt when they were late picking her up, but she realized they had lives and they couldn't just stop by at the hospital every day. Riley would probably stop soon enough.

She shook her head at that thought. No he wouldn't. He'd make a way to see her and see how her mom was holding up. He would drop anything to see her.

She smiled a bit, almost forgetting her dull mood. He was the light in her life, and she needed him now more than ever.

* * *

Being the 'trifling' person that he was, Jin Taylor hadn't left his safe haven since the incident at the hotel. Not that he was scared or anything, hell naw. He just didn't want to risk going to jail and getting anally raped.

Okay, so he _was_ scared. He didn't want to be some other dude's boy toy! He loved women too much.

Okay, scratch that. He loved the _assets_ of a woman. He could give a damn about anyone but himself anymore. Rich ass…

He was currently in his kitchen popping some more popcorn and pouring potato chips in a bowl. What was he about to do?

Sit his lazy ass down and watch another gangster flick!

Or so he thought.

There was a knock on his door, interrupting his privacy.

"Goddamnit." He growled, setting the bag of chips on the counter. He practically stomped out of the kitchen and neared closer to the door. As he did so, he felt weird. Like his gut was telling him, 'Stop! Turn around!', but he was stubborn as all hell. Should've listened.

In his robe and slippers, he finally twisted the doorknob and pulled back.

As he was met face to face with the person standing at the door, he literally panicked inside. He hoped it didn't show, but as the figure's frown flipped into a knowing grin, he felt his stomach drop. The man in front of him could see right through him.

"Jin Taylor, is it?" The man asked, although he knew. Jin tried to keep his cool, so he rested his left side against his door frame.

"Who wants to know?"

The man nearly laughed, but stopped himself. This guy wasn't fooling anybody.

"So…are you him or not?"

Jin rolled his eyes. "Yes. Now what seems to be the problem?" He tried to make his voice sound irritable, but it just came out all bitch-like. That wasn't Jin at all.

There was a look in the man's eyes that appeared to be a bit sinister, making Jin literally freeze in fear. He didn't know why this dude was that damn intimidating.

The guy in front of him smirked wickedly and leant forward, his nose almost touching Jin's. Kind of weird. Just a little.

"I got one question for you sir…" He asked in a slow, menacing tone. Jin didn't say anything for a while, but as the guy stood in the same position, he realized he was waiting on an answer.

"Oka-"

"DO YOU WANT ME TO KICK YOU IN THE NUTS!"

Shit! He was afraid of that.

* * *

I don't care how crazy you are, NOBODY wants their nuts kicked. lol.

Anywaayys, yeah like I said, this chap's all over the place.

But if you would be so kind as to drop a review, I'd really appreciate it! :D


	23. Back To Normal, Almost

Ya girl is BACK! And yes I'm working on next chapter as we speak! Still got the Jin situation. Trust, that nigga up to something. The drama ain't over just yet.

Thank you guys so much for being patient. I'm here now! So here goes the shoutouts.

And I'ma do it like others so I won't make you all feel like I'm dismissing whatever you all say to. I'm going to respond to your reviews! :)

MissG2020: Thanks girl! Sometimes you gotta cool it on the action lol.

Schweetpea1870: Oh, Jack is coming back and so is Cristal (like the champagne) lol. Jack's not in this chap, but he will be in the future ones. You just wait lol. Thanks for the review, girl! :)

YoungKong313: Lol thanks son! I try, I try.

Rivi2012: Haha, thank you! (When you updating girl! ;D)

Terrie Shiro: Thank you so much!

BriBri: Ha, thanks! And I've read those stories, and I'm hooked! Ol' boy needa update though lol. But naw, I won't give up on my stories. *Shakes head* Never that.

AZ: LMAO! I'm here, no worries! I'm glad you're a fan.

DarkGeneral42: Aww, you're sweet. Thank you! :)

Chellenic83: Thanks! I'm notice sometimes they're a little OC lol, but I try not to do that too often. Glad you like the story though. And when are you updating? :) Naw, I ain't gon' rush you. Do ya thing.

StarKiss666: You are so right lol. After all this bullcrap drama with the Jacksons and the Taylors, I'll get right on that. I was thinking about making Huey jealous in some of my past chapters, but I'll wait lol. I really appreciate you're review and you liking the story. Thank you :)

THA FRY MAN: Thanks sir! :) I'm looking forward to seeing how the story ends too lol

iLoveBoondocks: Paha! Yeah, they some real freaks. They need to slow it down, don't they? lol. Thanks!

Nyakoi: Yes, it was Briana's crazy ass. *sigh* I know right? She straight trippin'! lol Thanks for the review!

punkfluff: I'm baaaccckkk! lol no real reasons for not updating, other than school and writer's block lol. But i'm here, and trust I'll never let my stories linger. Glad you like the story! Thank you so much!

jasmine kareem: No, Huey's not in the pep rally. He's just on the bleachers, watching everything take place lol. Glad you like it! Thanks!

lowkeyminaj: Haha! I love you too! Thanks, and there definately will be more Huey and Jaz, especially next chapter (which will be coming to you real soon)!

havensworth: When is the next chapter up? NOW! :) Thanks for reviewing.

To the guests (I wish FanFic didn't change, smh because now idk who you are), thanks for your reviews. I'm glad you guys love it! It's all for you guys.

DISCLAIMER: I JUST OWN THE OCs. THAT'S IT!

Okay you guys, don't hate me. This chapter is kind of chill, too. But...oh, just read it already lol.

* * *

CHAPTER 23: BACK TO NORMAL…ALMOST

She woke up to what sounded like a small group of people talking. She didn't know who they were or what they were even doing there, but she would soon find out once she opened her eyes and adjusted them.

Slowly, she opened her eyelids and found herself lying flat on her back. She was staring up to the ceiling, still hearing the voices. She tried to lift her head, but found it impossible for some reason. She was so weak. She grunted as she attempted to do so again, but all she did was get everyone's attention.

"Is she up?" She recognized the voice that time.

She just gave up trying and sighed, making a few people she couldn't see murmur.

"She is."

Then she heard everyone scramble and the next thing she knew, she was met with six faces staring at her. It took her a minute to recognize everyone, but she soon did. She forgot their names, though.

"Mom." Her daughter rushed to her side and suddenly bent down to hug her. She was totally taken by surprise at the affection. They haven't communicated…like, really communicated in so long. This was going to take some getting used to.

"…Hey honey." Her voice was as fragile as her body was, so it was kind of hard to hear.

Stacia pulled back and gave her mom a small smile. Her mother returned it, not really knowing why the girl was so happy to see her. She was the one who practically ruined her family's lives. Her daughter should hate her now. Well, maybe she didn't know about her mother's sneakiness. Otherwise, she wouldn't be this excited to see her.

"I'm glad you're okay." Stacia announced in a very relieved voice. Her friends nodded, except the boy with the big haired afro. What was his name again?

Stacia stood right beside her mom and stooped down to push a button. Tina felt her upper body lift up and realized it was the recliner button.

As her daughter was doing that, she continued to stare at the others not really knowing what to say. She forgot their names…even her daughter's boyfriend. Sad, she knew.

"Hi everyone." She greeted them the sweetest way she knew how.

"Hey." They all responded collectively.

"How do you feel, mom?" Stacia asked as she stood up and looked down at the frail woman she called mother. The woman shrugged, but winced as she felt the soreness in her arms and the pain in her side. That's when she decided moving around wasn't much of a good idea.

She looked up at her only child and sighed.

"Well…I've been better." She pessimistically replied, her voice sounding a tad stronger. Stacia frowned but kept her thoughts to herself. Her mother was lucky to be _alive_, so why was she _complaining_?

All was quiet for a moment, with the exception of a few awkward coughs from her daughter's friend with the dreads.

"So," She started up the conversation to lessen the more than uncomfortable atmosphere. "How's school you guys?"

Everyone eyed her skeptically. Knowing this woman, or _not _knowing this woman, they didn't think she'd actually care. Stacia just calmly looked back at her mother and replied with a,

"It's fine."

Mrs. Jackson nodded, but took note of their countenances.

"Is something wrong?" She asked confusedly as well. They all shook their heads slowly with the same looks on their faces.

The silence was back, so Stacia cleared her throat.

"Uh…yeah. You want anything to drink, mom?"

"No, it's okay sweetie. I'm fine." She assured, although she was a bit parched. She just didn't want to admit how weak she was.

As everyone stood around uncomfortably or uncaringly, Stacia watched her mother carefully, searching for some truth.

"You sure?" She asked again, but her mom held a hand up.

"I'm fine, Stacia." Her voice was still weakened, but a bit firmer this time. "You know, why don't you and your friends hang out or something. I don't want to stop you all from having a good time. I'll be okay."

Stacia shook her head harshly and attempted to say something else, but her mom gave her a look that made her think otherwise.

"Stacia, do as I say, okay?"

Her friends and boyfriend looked to her as she hung her head a little.

"Okay." She agreed after a few minutes in a quiet tone. She looked up at her mom again and turned around to leave. The rest of them followed her and that was that.

Tina sighed deeply and turned her attention towards the window. That's all she could do. Her body was completely dysfunctional and no one was there to entertain her. Heaven only knows where her husband went. She's never needed him as badly as she did at the moment. And he wasn't even there.

* * *

It was around 10:30pm; another chill day. The gang was currently in Jazmine's living room. They were either eating pizza or nachos, playing Call of Duty, or talking. Since Jazmine only had one controller, Cindy and the boys took turns in playing the game. As of now, Caesar was playing…

"Aw damn!"

And losing horribly…as usual.

"Nigga, you suck!" Riley howled as he watched Caesar's life rapidly decrease. Caesar tried hard to ignore him and repeatedly pressed the action button, attempting to shoot down the enemy.

Well, it didn't work.

He groaned frustratingly and turned his head to the boys.

"One more time." He practically pleaded. Riley shook his head hard.

"No nigga! Give it _here_!" He snatched it out of Caesar's hand, earning a 'Hey!' comment out of him. Cindy laughed at them. Huey just rolled his eyes at the ordeal. Jazmine and Stacia were tearing up that pepperoni and bacon pizza, not even paying much attention to the boys.

"Hey you guys." Came a peppy greeting from a Mr. Tom Dubois.

And therreee he goes…

Immediately Jazmine's head drooped. Everyone else either rolled their eyes or ignored him. They knew why he was there.

"Hey daddy." She replied in a bored-like tone. He seemed to not be affected by it much.

"What are you guys doing?" He asked as he took a seat on a nearby sofa.

Right next to Huey. *Sigh* Dude was _not_ slick.

No one answered. They just continued to play/watch the game or eat. He noticed Riley laying niggas out in the video game and cringed.

"Oh goodness. This game seems to be a bit…violent, don't ya think?"

"No." Riley muttered irritably. Jazmine just shook her head and ate the last of the pizza. Stacia didn't necessarily care. She just wanted the man to not go on his interrogation spree.

Tom let out a corny laugh and sighed. "Well Riley, I'm not surprised _you'd_ enjoy a game as graphic as this, but my baby girl should not have to witness such a thing."

Jazmine looked up at her father and gaped at him. Huey glanced his way and rolled his eyes again. Everyone else just ignored him.

Was this guy for _real_?

"Dad! I'm 17!" She half-yelled. "I've played Grand Theft Auto, Halo, Metal Gear Solid, the other Call of Duty game AND this one! I'm not a baby."

Tom looked totally taken by surprise. For what reason, no one knew. But then again, he was Tom.

"Young lady! How dare you speak to me like th-"

"Tom! That's enough."

Another voice interfered. Everyone looked up to see Sarah Dubois walking down the stairs in black sweatpants and a black tee (probably her night attire).

"Oh, hey mom." Jazmine greeted, a bit more excitable than that of her father. Her mother smiled warmly and walked over to her, giving her a forehead kiss.

"Hey sweetie." She turned around and saw everyone in the room chilling hard. "Hey you guys."

"Hey Mrs. Dubois." Everyone greeted back, causing Tom's face to drop.

"Wait, why didn't you guys-"

"We're on our way upstairs." Sarah cut him off purposely and grabbed hold of his arm, forcefully pulling him towards the staircase. "If you guys need anything, you know where to find us."

Jazmine smiled thankfully. She loved how understanding her mom was.

"Okay." Jazmine and a few members of the crew responded.

Mrs. Dubois continued to smile until she felt Tom trying to pull away. She turned to him and gave him a look that made him freeze up. She could be a little scary sometimes.

Watching her mother tugging her father up the stairs, Jazmine giggled silently. She placed her plate of a half-eaten pizza on the coffee table and leant back, full as a tick.

"I love her." She announced with a pleasant sigh. Stacia looked at her and smiled unusually. It wasn't as if it wasn't genuine, but due to her lack of sleep, it just didn't look normal. Jazmine tried ignoring it though and smiled back.

"Yeah, I love her too. Saving us from Mr. Interrogation." She cosigned as she dumped the bag of Tostitos chips on her plate.

"Hell yeah. I swear if that nigga stayed down here, my ass would've been ghost. Sorry Jaz." Riley said from all the way in front of her while still playing the game.

Jazmine shrugged.

"Hey, I'd understand."

"Yeah, well what _I_ understand is that if Riley don't hurry up and die, I'm headin' for the trunk!"

Riley paused the game and turned to Cindy with a "Bitch please" look on his face.

"Yeah, and I'm tryna get my turn again. I was just a little rusty at first, but I know what to do now!" Caesar argued, although no one was convinced with the Brooklyn native's story.

"Kill that noise, nigga. My cousin a six year old female, and her ass even play better than you. You'll be lucky to get a turn in again." Riley retorted, still going on a killing-spree.

Everyone but Huey, of course, laughed at Riley's statement and he just turned back towards the screen and continued playing the game. Cindy took note of Caesar's childish pout and grinned.

"Aww, Ceez don't worry. You'll get your turn soon." She assured with a playful pat on the back. He looked over at her and smiled softly.

Riley just snorted as he kept his eye on the game.

"Don't get him too excited. The nigga got a long way to go."

Cindy rolled her eyes. "Whatever, nigga."

Caesar smirked at Cindy defending him. As she looked at the screen, he took the time to check her out. She was so cute to him, and _damn_ fly. He loved her swag. She was just wearing deep blue skinny jeans, and a striped navy blue and white pullover sweater. Even her socks were navy blue. Her hair was done in a single braid that loosely hung over her right shoulder and to complete the entire look, she had on a navy blue skully with the white and blue ball at the end. His smirk grew into a smile. It, however, faltered as he caught Huey giving him a knowing smirk. He rolled his eyes and looked back at the screen.

Stacia soon sat back as she was finished with her food. The Itis kicked in.

Jazmine looked over to her good friend, and saw her looking about ready to pass out. She smiled warmly and lightly patted her on the shoulder.

"Tired Stace?"

Stacia closed her eyes and shrugged. "Guess you could say that."

Jazmine nodded, as if the girl could see her, and stood up to leave the room for a second. Meanwhile Stacia was already starting to doze off. That insomnia was starting to go away rather quickly.

"AWW SHIT!"

Her inconsiderate boyfriend's shouting caused her head to pop up. She sighed deeply and turned over to face the back of the couch.

"YES! MY TURN NIGGAAAA!"

Cindy's loud ass made her want to just slap her for being inconsiderate like her boyfriend.

She rolled her eyes.

_Niggas._

Eventually, Jazmine returned with a very fluffy-looking pillow and a pink and blue striped comforter.

"Here ya go." She said as she handed it over. Stacia awed at her sweetness and playfully hugged her.

"You are such a sweetheart, Jaz! Huey got a good one." She teased with a wink. Jazmine jokingly rolled her eyes, but blushed all the same.

"Hush." She replied simply as Stacia laughed.

Jazmine prepared to sit down when she saw Huey mouth something to her. She didn't quite comprehend, so she mouthed a 'what?'. He rolled his eyes.

"Can I talk to you in the kitchen?" He said aloud, cutting the bullshit.

Jazmine smiled weakly and shrugged as she followed him. Once they met up in the way-too-big-for-a-three-person-kitchen, away from everything and every_one_, Jazmine began to speak.

"What's u-"

But Huey wouldn't let her as he planted a quick, yet sweet kiss upon her lips. After pulling away, Jazmine gazed up at him in shock.

"I've been meaning to do that all day." He casually admitted, trying hard not to laugh at her surprised expression. Her eyes were wide and her lips were still pursed.

After what felt like five minutes (yeah…it was really five seconds), she finally spoke up.

"…You are something, you know that?" She scolded playfully and lightly slapped his shoulder. He just smiled and wrapped his arms around her.

"Nope, get off of me."

"Nope."

Jazmine continued to slap his arms, but found it useless. So she dropped her arms to her sides and let him embrace her. She giggled as she felt him about to lift her up.

"You better not!" She yelled, as if he'd actually listen. He scoffed and lifted her higher, causing her to laugh louder. As she felt a hard surface beneath her butt, she realized she was on the kitchen counter beside the refrigerator. She giggled some more and finally wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You're a jerk." She whispered, leaning her forehead against his. Despite her stubbornness, her smile was still evident.

He shrugged. "You don't care."

She rolled her eyes as if saying 'whatever' and leant forward to give him a kiss.

"Ooh! Niggas gettin' freaky in this bitch!"

As soon as their lips touched, Huey's obnoxious brother busted in, ruining the moment. Damn.

"What the hell, Riley." He replied monotonously. They've been caught before, why did he think this time would be any different?

He helped his girlfriend get down off the counter. Riley shook his head and snickered as he picked up the bottle of Pepsi and poured it into his empty Styrofoam cup.

"Why do I always gotta catch you niggas doin' shit? Ya'll sure don't know how to be slick. You ain't think niggas was gon' come in this bitch to quench they thirst?"

And he wasn't even really quenching his thirst. Not with that _Pepsi_.

"Shut up." Was all Huey could say at the moment. He couldn't help but think that maybe his brother had a point. This was like the third time he and Jaz were caught kissing…and then some.

"Riley, could you just hurry up and go?" Jazmine urged irritably.

The younger Freeman brother laughed and twisted the cap on the bottle.

"Fa' sho'. I understand you niggas want some privacy, I respect that. Do ya thing." The couple rolled their eyes. "But y'all might wanna go upstairs and lock that door for once."

Huey sighed loudly. "Get out."

"Nigga this ain't your house!"

"Get out!" Jazmine repeated. Riley sucked his teeth. Everyone knew he didn't like to be yelled at.

"Whateva niggas. Have fun, and clean the countertops when you done."

Jazmine scrunched her nose up and Huey gave his brother a look that read 'Really?'.

Riley chuckled on his way out.

Once again…

_Niggas_.

"Anyways," The older Freeman brother began before turning to his girl. "How did your parents react to the series of crazy events that's been going on lately?"

Jazmine let out a small chuckle and shook her head. She walked away from him to lean against the island.

"Well, my dad is…my dad, so you know how that went."

Huey rolled his eyes. Thomas Dubois overreacted about _any_ and _everything_.

"My mom had to stop us from arguing two nights ago." She added matter-of-factly. Huey raised his brow at that one.

"You didn't tell me all that." She shrugged lazily and looked to her left.

"What was the argument?" he inquired, clearly interested. Jazmine shook her head as if telling him not to worry about it, but he wasn't having that.

"What was it?" He tried one last time, but she shook her head again.

"It's not important. Just know that he had to be put in check and that's exactly what I did. He didn't like that so he got upset."

He had no idea what that meant. Huey wanted to ask her what they were arguing about again, but he didn't feel like being more irritated than he already was. He hated it when she brushed off a subject that probably wasn't meant to be brushed off to begin with. But…

"Whatever." He shrugged too. "If you don't want to talk about it, I'll stop."

She smirked slightly. "Thanks."

"Uh huh." He replied. She rolled her eyes at his nonchalant response and stood up straight to walk over to him again.

"So, my birthday's coming up soon." She told him in a sweet-soft tone as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Anything you have planned for me?"

Huey rolled his eyes again. "Jaz, your birthday isn't until May. It's only February."

She shrugged and batted her lashes. They both knew that her doing that was his weakness.

"Yeah, but do you have something planned for me anyway?" She asked sweetly with a growing smile on her face.

"Maybe." He answered, automatically earning a squeal out of his girl.

"Oh my God! Baby, are you serious!" She asked in total shock and excitement. He couldn't help but smile a bit at her reaction.

"Why are you so surprised?" He asked in all seriousness. When she deadpanned, he put up his hands defensively. "What?"

"Huey, you never, and I mean _ne-ver _plan anything for my birthday, nor are you interested in attending the parties."

"This is true."

She gave him a playful duh look as he smirked down at her. "So that's the reason I'm excited! You _must_ love me if you're willing to do that."

He inched closer to her, smoothly snaking his arms around her lower back.

"I do love you, Jaz." He told her in a deep clear tone that made her heart skip a beat and made her eyes seemingly sparkle.

"Aww. I love you, too. You're such a sweetheart." She complimented him and continued on talking about something else he wasn't even listening to. He was too busy admiring her beauty.

He gazed into her emerald orbs as she continued to ramble on and on. She looked so beautiful when she was happy. Well, she was always beautiful, but even more so when she wasn't sad, depressed, or angry. The look of pure joy on her face made him feel a little more alive each time he saw it. Without her in his life, he would still be that completely angry black boy who didn't want to have anything to do with anyone. Though she hasn't totally changed him (at all), she's done a number on him. Who knew Huey Freeman would ever smirk, smile, laugh, joke, hug, or kiss anyone? It was damn near impossible back in the day.

"…so Cindy, Stacia and I are trying to go on a shopping spree at the Woodcrest Mall. I'm in need of some new attire for spring and summer."

He smiled at her girlyness. She was still so adorable at times.

"Oh man, I can't wait. I'll finally be 18! Then I'm gonna get my tattoo and…"

_WHOA!_

Huey's eyes almost popped out of its sockets. In his mind, he just heard a record scratch.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, _whoa_!" He interrupted her. She stopped talking and gave him a confused look with those big dough eyes. He closed his eyes trying to register what he just heard.

"What?" She asked, still confused.

He waited a second to answer.

"…Did you just say you were getting a tattoo?" He had to make sure he heard her right. I mean, he wasn't totally paying attention to her the entire time, so he could be wrong.

"Yeah…?"

Or not.

She gave him an amused expression, her eyes half-lidded and the corners of her mouth tilted upwards.

"…Damn." He breathed, making her giggle and blush a bit. "You tryna be a rebel?"

She shook her head with a silly smirk. "Not at all. I just want a small tattoo on my hip area."

Huey was taken aback and lightly jerked his head back from hers, making her giggle again.

"Babe, don't worry. It'll be cute. And I'm pretty sure you'll love it." She promised him, looking into his eyes this time.

"How you figure?" he asked with a playful smirk. She didn't want to tell him what the tattoo was yet. She wanted him to see it once it was done, but she knew he'd love it. She smirked back.

"Huey, trust me. You'll love it."

He shrugged. "Just as long as it's not a tramp stamp-"

"It won't be. Believe me." The thought of having a tramp stamp nearly caused her to shudder. Huey noticed and snorted. "You're going to love it though." She reassured as she finally wrapped her slender arms around his neck again. She smiled warmly, instantly melting a small portion of ice from his heart. He couldn't help but smile back at her.

"Alright," He responded quietly, sounding as if he was in a trance. "If you say so."

She shrugged and blinked slowly, still smiling. "I do."

"Yeah…" He whispered as he leant closer to her lips again. Jazmine smirked and closed her eyes. She thought he was going to kiss her, but after five seconds, she didn't feel anything. When she opened her eyes, she found him looking downwards. Once she realized he was scanning her body, she giggled lightly.

"Huey, stop…" She playfully whined, acting like she didn't like what he was doing…

When she knew damn well she did.

He smiled but didn't say anything as he continued to look her over. She rolled her eyes and pushed off of him.

"You need to learn self-control." She joked, making him almost bust out laughing.

Almost.

"Me?" He inquired. "Who was the one sitting on my lap in the lunchroom?"

She shrugged with a silly look on her face.

"I don't know. I hope it wasn't some _other_ chick, or else she'd have to hear it from me."

He shook his head with yet another smirk. "What would you do if it _were_ some 'other chick'?"

She raised a brow and pursed her lips. "Are you challenging me?"

He shrugged carelessly, still smirking. "Just asking a question."

"Hmm. Well you remember how I reacted to Briana right?" She refreshed his memory, which actually made him laugh out loud. How could he forget _that_?

"Wow, you're crazy."

"Just answering your question." She replied, mocking his careless shrug.

"Uh huh."

Jazmine smiled and hugged him for the umpteenth time. This time he raised his brow.

"And _I _have no self-control? Woman, you can't keep your hands off me."

To end the argument, she stuck her tongue out, making him smile again. He won.

He didn't wanna seem like a corny nigga, but he was so in love with her it was ridiculous.

Jazmine smiled back before they kissed again, this time with no interruptions. They stopped before things got too intense. They knew this wasn't the time or place. Parents were home, friends were there, school was in the morning…they just weren't ready yet.

"I can't wait 'til we're finally alone." Huey admitted. He didn't even mean to blurt that out.

Jazmine stared into his wine tinted orbs and grinned. Her cheeks flushed at his confession, but she couldn't agree more.

"Yeah, I know." She whispered against his lips. "But before _that_ even takes place, you have to take me out on a date first."

He shrugged. "Alright, it's a deal."

Her eyes lit up. "Really?"

He shook his head. This girl acted like he was just going to have her sitting at home all day.

"Yeah. Where do you want to go?" She smiled appreciatively and kissed him one last time before breaking away.

"Surprise me."

He chocked up his brow at her. "No. You know I'm not good with surprises."

She smiled and shrugged.

"Fine, I'll let you know by tomorrow evening. Deal?"

"Deal." He uttered. She perked up.

"Good! Now let's go before they suspect us doing something." She suggested with a roll of her eyes. Huey nodded in agreement.

But damnit…he didn't want to leave.

* * *

Jin Taylor stared at the fat white cop sitting across from him with a poker face. They weren't about to find out anything. They were going to think Crystal was a stupid bitch accusing him of doing something he didn't do. They were going to assume that Tina Jackson set him up by hurting herself. It seemed as if she was ready for a fight anyways. She met up with him looking like she worked at a gym.

He looked over at the moderately built black cop standing up against the wall. What was this, good cop vs. bad cop? The white cop's demeanor looked dark and sinister, whereas the black cop's demeanor looked relaxed and calming. He already had a feeling about how this would play out.

"Alright Mr. Taylor," The white cop started with a Boston accent. "We have reason to believe that you are responsible for the attempted murder of a Mrs. Tina Jackson. Is that correct?"

"No sir." He lied. The cop's frown deepened.

"No?"

Jin shook his head again.

There was a slight pause before the cop began again.

"Okay. So you mind tellin' us how you and Mrs. Jackson met?"

Jin mentally groaned. He did not want to be there. "Well, we met at th-"

"_I'm sorry Mrs. Jackson, woooo! I am fo' reeeall! _Oh man, that's that shit right there, nigga!" The black cop laughed until the white cop looked back at him with a glare.

He fake-coughed during the short, yet awkward silence as both his partner and the criminal suspect looked at him like he was crazy.

"My bad man, I couldn't resist. Go on."

The white cop rolled his eyes and turned back towards Jin.

"You were saying?"

"…Yeah, well we met at work. I own a few businesses in Baltimore, along with my brothers, and one in Woodcrest. Ever heard of _Taylor Gang_?"

"In a song." The black cop responded seriously.

Jin nearly chuckled at that. "That Wiz Khalifa character got the name from us. But Mrs. Jackson works with me as my assistant at the _Taylor Gang_ building in Woodcrest. I can't lie and tell you that she and I haven't grown close to each other. It's natural for something like that to happen, considering the fact that we're around each other almost all the time. We have to have some sort of a relationship." He continued. The white cop just gave him a blank stare the whole time. "I swear to you I haven't laid a finger on that woman though."

There was another pause before the white cop went on.

"Okay." The cop started before adjusting his glasses and looking down at some papers. "Sounds legitimate, sir. But I have to ask…where were you the night Mrs. Jackson was rushed to the hospital?"

Jin tried to give a convincing look to the cops. "I was home with my daughter. She decided to come over after a long day at school."

The silence was long and awkward. Then all of a sudden, both cops began to crack up laughing. Jin didn't quite get the joke.

"What's…so funny?" he asked worriedly. The white cop shook his head while the black cop continued to laugh.

"A long day at school? Mrs. Jackson was admitted to the hospital on a _Sunday_, Mr. Taylor."

Jin's eyes widened as he realized his mistake. WHAT…a _dumbass_!

"Uhhh…I-I mean, I must've gotten the days confused."

The black cop's laughter died down as he shook his head. "Yo Rob, he must've gotten his days confused. How many times have we heard _that_ one?"

Rob the cop chuckled a little more. "Ohhh, you fucked up now."

Jin shook his head and groaned. This was not working.

"I'm telling the truth!" He nearly yelled, trying hard to not sound like a lying scumbag.

"Look, there was a time Briana came over during the week when she wanted to rest because of a long school day. I told you I don't know when Tina was admitted, so I got my days confused. If you said she was admitted on a Sunday, then I would've known."

"You should've known anyways because she was your assistant. Someone should've contacted you about that and you should be up to date with what's going on with her." Rob reminded him. Then, he paused and chuckled a little more as he noticed something else.

"And you call your assistant by her first name?" He asked. "Well just how close _are_ you two?"

Jin was quiet as he was searching for an answer in his head.

"I mean, you claim you don't know anything about her, but you call her by her name, which is highly unprofessional by the way. I'm pretty sure you know that though." He went on.

The black cop interrupted anything Rob was about to say as he just thought of something.

"Wait…what you say your daughter's name was?"

Jin's eyebrow arose. "…Briana, why?"

The cop ignored his question. "Spell it."

Jin looked at both of the cops in clear confusion and irritation. What did these _creeps _want with his daughter?

"B-R-I-A-N-A. Why is this relevant?" He had to ask, but the cop ignored him again.

"She got your last name?"

Jin nodded hesitantly, still confused. The black cop's jaw dropped as he looked at Rob. Rob looked back and shook his head.

"Seems we got a family of criminals in this joint." He said, making Jin jerk his head up.

_What?_

"_Come again_?" He shrieked.

Both cops looked at each other again and looked back at him.

"Your daughter turned herself in not too long ago due to harassment, attempted murder, and harmful threats." The black cop informed him as Jin sat there dumbfounded. Welp, there goes _his_ 'believable' story.

"Matter of fact," Rob added, "She was locked up before any of this shit here _happened_. So your story about her staying over your house during the week is invalid."

The black cop shook his head as Rob stared with great intensity.

Jin opened his mouth to say something, but was totally stumped. This was it. There was no turning back.

"If you had nothing to hide, why lie?" The black cop rhetorically asked. "Just tell us the truth."

Jin shook his head nonstop as he realized his life was over.

Unless he could find someone to bail him out.

But who?

* * *

"Alright guys, time to go." Jazmine announced as she rose up from her boyfriend's lap, much to his chagrin. Cindy jumped on Caesar's back unexpectedly and laughed as he almost fell. He shook his head, but carried her nonetheless.

Riley snickered at them but didn't say anything. And Ceez said he won't feelin' the white girl. Ha! Okay.

He woke Stacia up and firmly wrapped his arm around her by the waist in case she'd collapse. He knew she was way past tired, that girl was mentally and physically exhausted.

Cindy and Caesar were the first to walk out and say their goodnights to everyone. Caesar insisted on talking her home. Riley and Stacia were in tow, Stacia lazily saying goodbye to her friend. Riley rolled his eyes and shook his head before waving to Jazmine. She just giggled at the cute couple.

Then there was Huey. She sighed as she stood in front of him. She didn't want him to go, but they didn't really have a choice. All she could do was sleep, dream about him, and see him all day tomorrow. It was no big deal.

"You need help cleaning up?" he asked. She shook her head.

"No, I'll do it." She politely declined his offer. He shrugged at his failed attempt to stay a little while longer with her.

"Alright, fine. See you tomorrow." He told her before leaning down to steal a quick kiss from her. She smiled after they pulled back.

"Bye Huey." She said with a wave. "I'll be looking forward to that date."

He smirked at her and nodded before turning around to walk across the street.

She closed her door and smiled brightly as she started to clean the place. She was _definitely_ looking forward to their date.

She thought about what happened that day. They really had a good time. Stacia was getting her rest back up, no one interfered with her love life and the crew was back together. Things were starting to get back to normal.

* * *

Riley and Stacia stepped into the house tiredly, both of them ready to crash. Stacia had a little more strength, so she didn't have Riley holding onto her anymore.

He, on the other hand, had his duffle bag on his shoulder and a shoebox with his Nike boots inside.

Granddad, for once, let his youngest grandson sleep over his girlfriend's crib, since the old man knew the girl needed company. Though she was starting to get her sleep, she wasn't in the best shape. The girl's eyes were pink (thankfully not bloodshot red anymore) and she looked a little sickly. He figured she may need some assistance.

Riley turned on the living room light and set his things down on the carpeted floor. He didn't even bother to go in a room, he just opened his bag, pulled out his night clothes and dressed right there. Stacia was too tired to be affected by him changing his clothes in front of her. She just kicked her shoes off and headed upstairs.

"Babe, you comin'?" She rasped. He looked up at her and nodded, finally pulled up his night shorts before following behind her.

As they approached the top of the stairs, Stacia saw the red light blinking on the phone, indicating she had messages.

"Let me go check the messages, and you go to my room.

"You ain't gotta tell me twice." He muttered sleepily and dragged his feet to her room. She giggled lightly at his state as she walked to the phone.

She played the messages, some of them from her parents' jobs, and one from a relative that always called because he wanted money. She rolled her eyes.

Then she heard a message from someone she didn't know.

"_Hi, Mrs. Jackson. This is Crystal from the Marriott hotel. Please…whenever you get this message, call me back. It's really important. I know we don't like each other, but I'm willing to let bygones be bygones. This is bigger than us. Call me ASAP. Bye."_

_What was _that _about? _Stacia thought.

She shrugged. It was probably about reservations or something. Eh, she'll tell her mother about it later. She was too tired to care at the moment.

She walked away and headed to her room to sleep with her man.

Not in _that _way. Well, at least not tonight.

* * *

Sooooo much crap goin' on next chapter. I mean, I believe it's going to blow your minds. No lie, next chap will be drama-filled.

Until next time...review! xD


	24. Friends And Foes

Hey guys! New chapter!

I'm really sorry for the late update. I meant to post this last week, but y'know how life just alters your plans -_-. On top of that, my ass is sick! Smh, AND my best friend's birthday's tomorrow. We supposed to eat at a restaurant and go clubbin' later. We'll just see about that lol. Anyways, special recognition to the ones I love!

MissG2020: Lol, yeah Jin is a dumbass. Can't even lie right lol. Jazmine's tattoo will be discussed in later chaps lol. And aww I'm jealous! I want a tattoo, but I'm a punk lol. Thanks for the review girl!

Jazavelli: Lol I understand. It took forever for me to update, so I know people must've forgotten some things. Glad you were happy to do it though :). Yes, Jin is stupid as hell. Who lies like that? lol. Lol the black cop is silly. You'll see him again in later chaps, and trust the silliness will continue lol. Tom is just...a square lol. There's no other word to describe him. Yep, Sarah's the cool parent lol. Glad you loved that scene! Yes, Huey's fallen head over heels for Jaz lol. You know Huey gon' have to put niggas in their place if they step to either one of them incorrect lol. But I agree, Jaz tryna have standards, but they some freaks, they need to hurry this date up lol. Ya'll remember the chapter where they were kissin' and moanin' all on each other lol. Haha, thanks. Riley's cool :) Are Crystal and Tina gonna take down Jin? Hmm, we'll see lol. The Jackson fam need to work on their relationship pronto. You won't see much of that this chapter though, unfortunately. :( In due time, though. Her dad? he's in this chapter! :D Thanks for the review girl. Hope you like this chapter!

Schweetpea1870: Lol yeah, I know it's been awhile since I've updated, so I understand you having to read it again. Glad you still love it, girl! :D LOL Ceez is silly. That's one of my favorite moments lol. But yeah, the Jackson family need to rebuild their relationship. It's not in this chapter, but soon. Tom is such a lame, lol. He be havin' me weak though. Such a cornball. And naw he ain't slick lol. We all know what that nigga doin'. Yeah Cindy got a little defensive didn't she? lol. Ceez know he feelin' her. He better go'on head and make another move lol. Yes, they are always getting caught! lol Like damn, can ya'll think before ya'll start feelin on each other? lol. Glad you find them cute though! xD That's what I was aiming for. And oh yess lawd, Huey's nigga instincts will bein full effect lol. He already be trippin' about her belly ring lol. *Sigh* Jin Taylor is just...ugh! How you gon' get caught up in your own damn lie? Lol. You gon' lie, be good at it. LOL girl I've been thinkin' about inserting the Mrs. Jackson quote a while back, but I was like, nahh I'll wait lol. Glad everyone liked that scene! Oh no worries, Jin will really get his. You're not going to believe the shit in this chap, but next chap is just ridiculous lol. I'm halfway through it right now. Hope you like this chap girl. Thanks for reviewing! xD

ButterflyEyes24: Aww I'm glad you loved it enough to read it again :) Thank you! Mm-hmm, Ceez know he feelin' Cin lol. They'll be together soon, no worries :D. Hell yeah Huey's sprung lol. Ohh trust Jaz ain't gon' have no stupid tats lol. No ma'am. Older Jazmine will have a bangin' tat! In the future though! :P Yes, Riley is a real man. Stacia got a good one. I'm jealous lol. She'll be good though. LOL everyone says the same thing about Jin. He's so stupid for getting caught up in his own lie, huh? He's a dumbass for even lying like that. Smh, oh well lol. Crazy ass fam. Aww thanks :) Personally, I've always wondered how the minor characters' lives would turn out after the kids grew up. And you made sense to me lol. I'm glad you like the story once again. Thanks for reviewing! Hope you like this chapter.

Deonte: Haha, aww thank you! That's so sweet :D Hope you like this chap!

NatashaBryant: Thank you! :D! Glad you like it! And the update is NOW! XD!

Kitty: Woow, just as I'm about to post my chapter, I get a notification that you reviewed lol. Glad I caught you just in time! Aww, thanks! Yeah, I just try to do something different. I love that you love the story! Thank you! Hope you like this chapter! :D

Thanks to all who favorited, followed and read my story, even the silent readers. I see you! O_o lol lemme stop bein' weird.

DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING BUT THE OCs!

Just wanna say R.I.P. to Sherman Hemsley aka George Jefferson. That was my dude, yo. He made me laugh throughout my childhood, and still does as I look at the old shows. Thank God he died of natural causes. It's not like he was murdered or drugged himself to death. Tragic that he's not here, but it'd be even more tragic if he left this world like Amy Winehouse or Kurt Cobain. :( Amy Winehouse was my girl too, but I knew that shit was inevitable. Smh. Anyways, just thought I'd say that.

This chap will piss you off. I'm givin' yall a fair warning. No one gets hurt...yet. Well...no one we care about gets hurt lol. Ya'll just gon' have to read it for yourselves. This chapter is long af for no reason, so be prepared to do some readin'! :) Enjoy!

* * *

CHAPTER 24: FRIENDS AND FOES

"One more lap, the usual cool down, and we can all go home." Coach Salem instructed the female Woodcrest basketball team. Cindy grunted, loud enough for her teammates to hear, but not enough for her coach to hear. They lightly giggled, but the coach did hear _that_. She turned around, giving everyone the evil eye. They all just stared back at her as if they were the most obedient souls you ever did meet.

"Run. Now." She commanded. Just like that, the girls took off.

Cindy…she just wasn't into it.

She rolled her eyes as she ran her lap around the gym. Don't get me wrong, she loved ballin' with a passion, but after all that's been going down, she didn't even feel like being there. She just wanted to skip out, but she was stronger than that. She knew this little phase was just that: a phase. She'd get over it by next week.

After practice, she ran into the locker room and picked up her belongings. She said bye to her teammates and ran out. She planned on walking home, but much to her surprise, her mother was outside on the curb in her deep chocolate business attire, waiting for her. She was so excited to see the woman, she dropped her things on the curb and ran over to hug her.

"Mom!" She shrieked, nearly knocking the poor woman over. Lauren McPhearson laughed as she held her only child.

"Hi honey. You seem so surprised to see me. Why is that?"

Cindy didn't feel it was necessary to be a smart-ass at the moment. She knew her parents worked, and they worked hard. But she barely saw them because of it. She knew they didn't intentionally neglect her, but she couldn't help but feel somewhat neglected.

"Mom, I'm just happy to see you. Is that a crime?" She joked as she pulled away from the embrace to pick up her things. Her mother laughed again.

"Not at all, sweetheart." She replied and walked her daughter to her side of the car after she had everything. "Now let me take you home so you could get cleaned up."

Cindy was so happy that her mom was with her, but she couldn't help but wonder why she picked her up.

"Mom," she asked as they finally got in the car.

"Yes hon?" Her mother asked, starting the car up.

Cindy looked at her mom a little funny. "You okay?"

Mrs. McPhearson looked over at her and tilted her head.

"I'm fine, sweetie." She answered in curiosity. "The question is, are _you _okay?"

Cindy smiled again. "Yeah. Just…why are you picking me up?"

Lauren sighed pleasantly as they both put on their seatbelts. "Well, I requested a two week vacation, and my boss was reluctant, but he let me have it. So, you'll be seeing me for two weeks!"

Cindy almost squealed, but her inner toughness wouldn't allow her to. Instead she plastered a giant grin on her face, and let out a little laugh.

"Wow. I can't believe he let you do that." Her mother laughed too as they finally pulled off.

"Yeah I know. I'm glad he did though. You don't know how much I've missed you guys."

Cindy couldn't stop smiling. Finally, _finally_ things were starting to come around. After all the bullshit that's happened lately, she finally felt great! She was tired from basketball practice, and matter of fact, all she wanted to do was take a nice long shower and rest up.

That is, before her mother had arrived.

Now, she just wanted to stay with her mother all day.

"I missed you too, mom."

Nothing could possibly ruin this day for her.

* * *

_Ding-dong._

_Ding-dong._

"Boy! Get the door." Granddad yelled at his eldest grandson for no reason, seeing as the boy was sitting right across from him.

Huey huffed and stood up from the kitchen table to answer the door. Ignoring his granddad's warning about him 'huffin' and puffin', he opened it to find his brother standing there, his girlfriend in tow.

"Where's your key?" Huey questioned in annoyance. Riley and Stacia walked in after he stood out of the way of the door. Riley helped Stacia out of her peacoat before taking his off.

"I left it here." He said, sounding annoyed at his brother's annoyance. "Why you care for, nigga?"

Huey snorted. "What kind of question is that? Your literacy level is off. Fix that."

"Nigga, if you don't -"

"Ya'll better stop!" Stacia yelled, finally closing the door behind her. "I ain't come up in here to listen to this mess."

The brothers looked at each other before looking at her.

"Then, why_ did_ you come here?" Huey bluntly asked. "You know that's all we do."

Riley sucked his teeth.

"Nigga, she can come over!" He defended, hanging the coats up in the front closet.

Stacia cosigned with a nod and a small smile. "That's right. I can come over. I'm practically family!"

Huey rolled his eyes before walking off into the kitchen again. "Whatever." The couple followed him.

"Yo, practice was a bitch today, man." Riley expressed as he took off his black gloves and his black skully.

"Boy! Watch ya mouth!" The Freeman boys' legal guardian shouted to his youngest grandson. "And make a plate for baby girl. You know I taught ya'll better than that. Show a lady some respect."

Riley shook his head. "Granddad, can I even get in the _house_ before you start goin' off on me?"

"Nigga hush! Just do as I say!"

Riley sighed as Stacia giggled behind him. Huey just continued to eat the salad that he prepared, since he refused to eat any of Granddad's steak and potatoes. He buttered those potatoes too much for Huey's liking, and red meat and Huey just don't mix.

Riley walked over to the stove, took out two Dixie paper plates from the counter and proceeded to fixing both him and Stacia's food. Stacia pulled off her pink and green gloves and folded it up. Granddad changed his sour demeanor to a cheerful one as he looked to her.

"Hey little baby."

She waved with a big Colgate smile as she took her seat beside Huey and placed her gloves in her lap.

"Hi, Mr. Freeman." She shyly greeted back.

"You keepin' my grandson in check?"

She giggled again. "Always."

Granddad smiled back. "That's good. That boy better behave."

"He does."

"Oh!" Granddad exclaimed, taken aback by the bass in her voice. She laughed.

"Aye now!" Riley interrupted. "Why ya'll talkin' about me like I ain't standin' here?"

"Shut yo' ass and hurry up and fix cutie pie's plate! And pour me some more orange juice."

Riley shook his head again. That old nigga steady fussin' for no reason.

After Riley fixed both plates, and gave Granddad his juice, he took a seat at the table, sitting between Stacia and Granddad.

He sighed as he realized he had to sit next to Granddad. He looked to his brother.

"Uh, Huey-"

"Nope." He instantly cut his little brother off. He knew what he wanted. Riley sucked his teeth.

"Bitch." He muttered.

"Aye!" Granddad yelled obnoxiously. "Watch yo' damn mouth!"

Stacia laughed. They were so funny.

* * *

Lying on her stomach, Jazmine worked on her Oceanography homework, possibly the easiest thing she's done since she started high school. She always had to play music in the background. Without it, she'd be bored, and when you're bored you're disinterested. When you're disinterested, you're not focused. When you're not focused, you're easily distracted. Easy distractions could lead to procrastination. Procrastination could lead to incomplete work. Incomplete work could lead to a zero. Zeros are F's. And she did not want an F for incomplete work because of procrastination because of easy distractions because of not focusing because of disinterest because of boredom because of no music.

So let's just say, music played an important role in her life. She needed it. She smiled as she heard the lyrics to the song.

_When I feel what I feel  
Sometimes it's hard to tell you so  
You may not be in the mood to learn what you think you know_

_There are times when I find  
You want to keep yourself from me  
When I don't have the strength; I'm just a mirror of what I see_

As if on cue, her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She pulled it out and smiled at the text.

_-Find out where you want to go yet? -Huey_

Her closed-mouthed smile bloomed into a full on grin while she texted back.

_-Movies…and maybe dinner? :) -JayBaby_

She put the phone down beside her and went back to her homework.

_But at your best, you are love  
You're a positive motivating force within my life  
If you ever feel the need to wonder why  
Let me know, let me know_

She got a quick text back.

_-Don't smile…_

She snorted at that reply.

…_I got you, though. –Huey_

"Aww!" She cooed aloud, still cheesing hard.

_-Thanks babe! I love you! xD *Muah!* -JayBaby_

She giggled as she typed her message into her phone. She knew how he'd react.

_When you feel what you feel  
Oh, how hard for me to understand  
So many things have taken place before this love affair began_

She only had one more question left and she couldn't seem to finish it due to her current distraction that is her boyfriend.

_But if you feel, oh, like I feel  
Confusion can give way to doubt  
For there are times when I fall short of what I say,  
What I say I'm all about, all about_

She felt the phone vibrate on her arm and picked it up to read the new text.

_-You are so extra. I love you, too._

_And why did you change your signature to 'JayBaby'? Is Cindy your influence? –Huey_

She giggled and rolled her eyes.

_-No DAD! I thought it sounded cute. Plus 'Jaz' is so…boring. –JayBaby_

_But at your best, you are love  
You're a positive motivating force within my life  
If you ever feel the need to wonder why  
Let me know, let me know_

She finally finished the last of her homework and threw it aside. She was so ready to be done with that! She stood up and stretched her legs and her back. She heard her phone buzzing again and practically leapt to get it.

Eager ass.

She expected to find another text, but the phone ended up ringing. She picked it up and answered it.

"Hello?" She couldn't stop smiling.

"_You know who it is_." She giggled at his bored reply.

_Tell me what it is (Tell me what it is)  
Make believe, there's no need to make believe_

"You've got such a way with the ladies, Huey." She said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"_Yeah, well I got you, so I must not be that bad_." She could practically hear him smirking on the other end.

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Why didn't you just text me back?"

"_It's annoying. Plus I know you missed hearing the sound of my voice_." He joked. She laughed.

"Not true." She lied, blushing.

"_Oh, really?_" He questioned. "_Is that music I hear in the background?_"

"No." She quickly replied, lying again. He snorted.

"_Jazmine, I hear it. It sounds like you're playing love songs. Is that Aaliyah?_"

"Shut up!" She playfully scolded before laughing again. "You're not supposed to point out stuff like that!"

He snorted again. "_What am I supposed to do then? Act like I don't hear it?_"

"Yes!" She stressed. "And go with the flow. That's what normal people do."

Okay, even _he_ had to laugh at that statement. She laughed too.

"_Jaz, we're far from normal_." He reminded her.

She sighed, feeling giddy inside at the sound of his voice. "Yeah, we are. But that just makes us extraordinary."

She knew he was rolling his eyes.

"_So cliché_."

_Look beyond your own (Look beyond your own)  
Try and find, find another place for me_

"Well it's true."

"_Maybe. I know you missed me, though_."

She rolled her eyes at his arrogance. "How do you know?"

"_Because I missed you, too_." She smiled again and let him go on. "_Since you're a hopeless romantic, I know you missed me. So don't lie_."

She sighed.

"Huey, you know I missed you. Stop it, you're embarrassing me."

"_Why? It's just us_."

"Huey!"

'_Cause  
At your best, you are love_

He snorted at her response.

"_Okay, fine. I'll stop. You should come over, though_."

"That's what I planned on doing. What's going on over there?"

He sighed. "_Nothing. Riley and Stacia are over here watching something on Netflix. Granddad went out to find someone to fix the hole in our room. I'm just sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for you to come over…now_."

Oh…demanding, aren't we?

She smiled at his attitude. "I'm coming babe. Calm down."

"_I'll be waiting_." She giggled again.

_You're a positive motivating force within my life  
If you ever feel the need to wonder why_

"Bye. Love you."

_Let me know,_

"_Love you, too_."

_Let me know…_

_Click_.

She shook her head after she clicked off. That boy and his impatience. What was she supposed to do? Teleport?

She stuffed her phone in her pants pocket and walked over to her dresser. She opened the top left drawer for a fresh pair of socks. Just as she pulled out her green and red polka dot ones, her phone vibrated in her pocket again. She picked it up and looked at the screen.

_Huey_

"Yes?" She answered politely.

"_On second thought, I'm coming over. Who's over there?_"

She smiled. At least they'd be alone.

"Nobody but me."

"_Oh damn._" He sounded surprised, though his voice was still calm. She smirked. "_Why didn't you suggest that earlier then?_"

"Because you were so adamant about me coming over your place. Commanding me like a child."

"…_Whatever. I'm comin'_."

"Well hurry up and get off the phone!" She joked. He sighed, making her giggle.

"_Whatever_." He repeated before clicking off. She clicked off and squealed. They were finally going to be alone!

Then, her smile dropped, right along with her phone and her socks.

Wait. They…were finally going to be…_alone_. No parents, no friends, no annoying siblings…nobody.

The very thought not only excited Jazmine, but it scared her too. What if they go too far? What if their kisses turn into make-out sessions? What if their make-out sessions turn into…something else?

Her body shivered at the mere thought of them doing…_something else_. She wanted to do it, sure. That's why she was nervous about them being alone together with raging hormones. But she was nervous because it's just something she's never done before. She wasn't even sure if she was ready, and if she was, did _he_ have the right stuff to go all the way? She was not about to be a teenage baby mama.

Plus, they haven't even gone on a proper date yet. They needed to hurry that up though. She could control herself when he could control himself, but if he couldn't...shoot, her purified days would be over.

She inhaled and exhaled a shaky breath before she finally bent down to pick up her socks and phone. She placed them back in the drawer. She put her phone back in her pocket and went back over to her bed to put her homework away and into her bag. She was about to walk out the room, but backed up to go back to her dresser again.

"_Pure Seduction_." She read one of her _Victoria's Secret_ perfume bottles aloud. She shook her head. What was she trying to do, kill him?

She looked at another one and gasped. "Oh I forgot about this one!" She said, picking up one that read _Vanilla Lace_. That one would do. It wasn't too strong, but it smelled great. She sprayed a good amount on her wrist and trailed it over her body.

She smiled after placing it back on the dresser and sighed. _That's good._ She thought and dashed down the stairs into the kitchen.

And please don't ask why she was in a hurry.

She opened the cabinet above the microwave and pulled out a box of _Act II _butter popcorn. She knew Huey didn't eat that stuff, but she did. For him, she opened the fridge and pulled out some pre-cut pineapples, Granny Smith apples, Mandarin oranges, and strawberries. They were already conveniently placed in a big bowl, so she picked that up and put it on the counter.

She was about to take the plastic off of the popcorn bag when she heard a firm knock on the front door. She put it on the counter and sprinted to the door, unlocking it.

"Come in!" She yelled. Before scurrying back into the kitchen.

* * *

Huey rolled his eyes as he pushed open the door and closed it behind him. "Jazmine!" he yelled, not knowing where she went.

"In here!" She shouted back. He sighed and pulled off his coat, placing it on the coat rack. He easily slipped out of his shoes and met up with her in the kitchen.

Leaning against the wall, he stared at his girlfriend popping the bag of popcorn in the microwave.

"Jazmine, why didn't you just open the door?"

She shrugged. "I just wanted to hurry up and pop this." She said, referring to the popcorn. His eyebrow arched.

"What's the rush?"

She shrugged again and walked over to him to steal a quick kiss. His face twisted in confusion. That kiss was weird. It was like she really didn't want to kiss him. She didn't even look him in his eyes like she normally did.

"…You okay?" He asked, as she turned her back to him to throw the plastic wrapper away.

"Mm hmm." She replied in a peppy voice and kept her back turned as she stood right in front of the microwave.

He studied her. She was acting a little strange, and he couldn't understand why. He watched her as she continued to stare intently at the popcorn in the square heater. Her arms were folded, but it didn't look natural at all. It looked awkward, actually.

"Jazmine, what's wrong?" He asked again. "You look nervous."

She finally turned her head around to glance at him and looked back at her popcorn. She shook her head and let out a forced giggle.

"I'm fine. Just waiting on the popcorn." She replied calmly. He stared at her, not convinced by her story. Sure she was waiting on the popcorn, but that didn't explain her weird antics. She was avoiding him, and for what?

"Whatever." He let it go for now. "Are we watching a movie or something?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I didn't get a chance to pick one out yet."

He scoffed.

"Jaz, I think we both need to find a movie to our liking. Not just you."

"You don't even know what I wanted us to watch." She responded timidly, her back still turned.

He shook his head as he walked over to her. Fuck the bullshit.

He wrapped his arms around her waist from the back. She shuddered at the sudden gesture.

"What's the matter? You seem nervous about something." He whispered in her ear, unknowingly causing a shiver to run down her spine. "You know you can tell me anything."

She sighed softly and hesitantly brought her hands down to his, gently prying them off of her. She turned around, _finally_ facing him. She inwardly frowned at his confused expression. She didn't want him to think she didn't like him touching her.

"Huey, don't do that. Please." She kindly stated. She heard the microwave beeping and turned around to open it up.

Huey stared at her, his eyes wide in shock at her reaction. She just told him to leave her alone after she invited him inside? Wow. He was speechless as he watched her take out the freshly popped popcorn and shut the microwave. He tried to ignore the foul smell from the damn thing filling up his nostrils as he snatched the snack out of his girlfriend's hands. She gasped again at his sudden move and glared at him. He matched her glare as he moved the bag out of her reach.

"What the hell, Huey! Give it back!" She nearly screamed as she attempted to lounge to get it. Huey gently pushed her back away from it.

"Not until you tell me what the hell's wrong with you!" He yelled, tired of her playing around. "You were all giggly and shit on the phone, now you act like I have some contagious disease! What's the problem?"

"Nothing!" She lied, her eyebrows furrowing as if she was about to cry. He missed it though.

"You're lying!" He shouted back. "What have I done to you, Jaz? What? Did I call you out your name? Did I beat on you? Did I cheat on you? Did I ever force you to do something you didn't want to do?"

"No." She responded, her voice sounding as meek as a mouse. The change in her tone made Huey feel bad. Damn, he knew he was about to make her cry again. He hated that shit. Not only was her crying annoying, it made him feel like shit. He came to realize after all these years of knowing her that for the most part it was he who made her cry, specifically during their childhood. He would only tell her the truth, but he was brutal with it. He could've sugar coated some things, or he could've waited until she was old enough to handle the truth, but no. He just had to be the asshole.

This time was a little different. He actually didn't know why she was about to cry, because she wasn't saying anything! He didn't like to yell at her, but she was pissing him off. He sighed and brought his arms around her waist again. He still didn't like to see her cry. She didn't fight him off this time.

"Jazmine," He called her softly, looking into her shifty eyes. She was looking every which way, trying to prevent those liquid drops from falling out of her jade orbs. Huey just continued to stare into them. "Just…tell me why you're acting like this. I want to help."

She looked down, wiping a lone tear out of her left eye.

"I'm just being dramatic as usual."

"Ya don't say." He stated dryly. She giggled lightly before meeting his gaze.

"Baby, I'm just worried about us." She whispered. His eyebrow's furrowed in further confusion.

"You thinkin' about breakin' up?"

She scrunched her face up at the thought. She wouldn't even _dare_!

"No!" She screeched. His face dropped to his neutral expression.

"Oh. Well, what is it?"

She continued to stare into his wine-hued orbs.

"I'm worried about us being alone." She uttered silently. There was a slight pause in the air before her boyfriend smirked and lightly sucked his teeth.

"That's all?" He inquired in disbelief. This girl made it seem like it was such a big deal.

She felt her cheeks warm up as she nodded, like a child being chastised. He snorted and shook his head.

"Told you I was being dramatic."

He sighed. "You weren't kidding." She giggled a little, her cheeks brightening all the more. "Jaz," He called her in all seriousness. "You have self-control, right?"

She nodded again.

"Then know that nothing's going to happen. Plus, you wanted us to go out first, right?" She grinned and nodded again. "I have self-control, too. You know that."

"Yeah, I know." She responded firmly, finding her voice again.

"Good." He said before kissing her. It didn't last long at all. "Just don't try to get sexy on me."

She rolled her eyes playfully. "I'm not sexy now?"

He looked up to the ceiling and thought about it for a second.

"Okay, let me rephrase that. Don't try further turning me on."

She giggled and lightly slapped his arm. He smiled a small smile at her reaction and reached behind him on the counter. "You can have your bag of death back."

She laughed at that and pushed him off of her. "Thanks, you tease."

His eyebrow arched again. "I'm the tease, yet _you_ have on that intoxicating scent."

She blushed and grinned. Why the hell did she even put that on? She just wanted to smell good for him, but she didn't think it'd turn him on.

"Quiet, you." She ordered with a slender finger pointed his direction. "This bowl of fruit is for the both of us. I know you don't like popcorn."

"Thanks." He said as he picked up the bowl and headed to the living room, his girl following his trail. She pulled her lips in as she lightly slapped him on his backside. She whistled the London Bridges tune, trying hard not to laugh, as he zipped his head towards her. He smirked at her and raised his brow.

"You better stop it before I take back everything I just said." He warned, partially joking.

Only a little bit. Hell, she didn't even know how much she affected him.

"What?" She responded in an innocent tone contradicting her facial expression. He just turned back around and continued to walk. She giggled behind him. He just kept on smirking, his cheeks a little tinted.

She knew what she was doing.

* * *

"Take that bitch!"

"Whoop her ass!"

"Ya like that? Ya like that you lil' pussy!"

Damn. What the fuck was _wrong_ with people? This was a nightmare, it had to be. She'd never met such ruthless females in all her life. Shit!

Briana lie helpless on the ground within her cell as two She-devils pummeled her. She asked for this. She turned herself in. She insisted on doing the right thing. Who knew doing the right thing would hurt so bad?

She was not about to complain, or cry. She fought hard not too. She wanted to remain tough. She supposed all things happened for a reason. She interfered in people's lives all because of a boy she had a crush on. She was willing to possibly kill someone as she tried to make her move closer to the older Freeman brother. Because of all that, this was just the price she had to pay.

Her face was all bloodied and bruised due to the constant banging against the floor by the dyke with the dragon tattoo on the side of her face. She thought her ribs were broken as the other dyke with the braids that stopped at her neck kicked her.

She felt so weak, and was damn near about to pass out. It wasn't until her cellmate had returned from using the latrine that they stopped. She had to admit that the woman was not to be toyed with. Picture Deebo from _Friday_ in pigtails. That was her. Lazy eye and all.

"We got a problem?" The woman questioned in a grave tone, immediately halting the other two criminals.

"Naw Diablo, we good. We was just leavin' to go to our cell." The face-tattoo woman piped, looking shaky. The other one was on mute.

Diablo just lifted her head, a signal that meant 'Leave before I change my mind'. So within seconds, the thugs were out.

Diablo looked down at the broken girl on the ground, coughing up blood.

"Thanks." Briana managed to rasp as she attempted to rise up on her elbows. She groaned loudly as she failed and dropped to the ground again.

"Don't move. You'll only make it worse." The intimidator informed her. She walked over to the girl and picked her up, careful not to hurt her even more. As she set her on the cot, she noticed Briana wince.

"You good?"

Briana just nodded and slowly brought her hand up to wipe some of the blood off of her cheeks.

"Could you lend me a towel or something to get this blood off of me?" She asked politely. Diablo said no words as she stared at the girl for a second. Briana felt uncomfortable under her gaze and shifted her eyes to the right. She won't into that gay shit.

Diablo just reached down and lifted the sheet from the cot to wipe off her face. Briana screeched in disgust.

"Eww, I have to sleep on that!" She exclaimed. Diablo glared at the girl, causing her to clamp her mouth shut.

"This is all you got." She simply told her before continuing to wipe her face. "I'll see if there's some ice for you in the cafeteria. You're not broken, just bruised up."

Briana arched her brow skeptically. "How do _you_ know?" Diablo looked down at the girl again before standing up and walking out, leaving the girl confused and alone.

"The hell?" She mumbled softly as she was alone again. She grew nervous.

What if someone else comes in and tries to whoop her ass again? She'd be dead, she knew it. This place was just a grave all in itself. Just the other day, she witnessed a murder from afar. During their time outside, running around, exercising and whatnot, she saw someone shank another female in the neck on the track. Being that it was her first time witnessing such a thing, she felt sick to her stomach and almost threw up her lunch. Everyone else didn't seem too fazed, and if they were, they sure knew how to hide that shit.

What if she was another victim in this place? What if she never got out? What if she never saw her mom or her cousin again? What would happen then? Would her mom still think she was alive, trying to 'find herself'?

What about her dad? Though he was an ass, she'd never get to show him how useful she could be. She always had the idea that he thought she wasn't worth anything, so with her being here, he'd think even less of her.

As she continued to think about the 'what ifs', Diablo returned with a small bag of ice. Lucky her.

"Because that white bitch doesn't work in there today, the other one was nice enough to give me this after I told her what happened." She explained before gently placing it on her ribs.

"Just keep it there for a while."

Briana nodded and did as she was told. Diablo turned around and walked to the other side of the small room to lay on her cot, her back facing Briana. They were silent for a long while. Pretty soon, Briana couldn't take it anymore. She had to know.

"Why…are you being so nice to me?" She timidly asked as she shifted her eyes to the girl version of Deebo.

The bulky woman sighed at the broken silence, but didn't budge.

"What?"

Briana thought about rolling her eyes, but this wasn't her environment. She didn't know if she'd get rocked in her face for doing so or not.

"I mean, why are you helping me? You don't even know who I am and you're being so generous to me."

For a minute, Diablo didn't say anything. She didn't even move. Briana was beginning to think that she'd never get the answer to her questions. She shook her head, wincing at the pain. She should've gotten her some ice for her face too.

"Nevermi-"

"I can tell you ain't about this life."

Briana's eyebrows furrowed in both pain and thought. How could this girl know so much?

"You've probably never been into any real trouble before, am I right?"

Briana stared at the back of the woman in slight shock. "W-well no, but I wasn't exactly an Angel either."

"Of course not, you're here." She bluntly replied, finally turning over to face the young woman. "How old are you?"

Briana still didn't like being under her gaze, so she just looked up towards the ceiling. "17."

She heard the woman sigh hard and glanced to her right to see her shaking her head.

"You're too young. What the hell are you even doing here?" She asked, sounding majorly disappointed. "This ain't the life for you."

Oh hell no. She was not about to get a lecture from another _inmate_. That didn't even make sense to her.

"Well, no one at any age should be about this life, really." She murmured under her breath. Diablo heard her though.

She nodded. "That's true. But you had everything going for you. You can't be up in here with real trouble makers. You think those girls who just kicked your ass are the worst? They wouldn't even last five minutes in my hood."

Damn.

Briana looked back at her, interested all of sudden. "Where are you from?"

"Chester, Pennsylvania."

"Oh. I've never heard of it."

Diablo nodded. "It's best you don't know about it. Shit real out there." She sighed and turned to lie on her back, looking up. "Niggas always claim they go hard and all that bullshit, but they don't know what hard is until they endure the shit I had to go through."

Briana stared at the woman, not really knowing what to say.

"What…_did _you have to go through?" Briana inquisitively asked. She began to feel sorry for her, almost forgetting that _she _was the one all bruised up.

Diablo shook her head. "You ain't ready to hear all that, young blood." With that, she turned to her side, facing the wall again. "I'm goin to sleep. You should try doing the same."

Briana stared at her back, wanting to say something else. She wanted to know more about this Diablo person. What was her story? Why was she there if she was so against criminal behavior? And why was she helping her?

More importantly, where did she get the name Diablo from anyways?

Briana just shifted her eyes to the ceiling and tried to relax. Well, at least she could count on Diablo to have her back in this hellhole.

* * *

She was up.

His wife…was _up_.

He'd been waiting for this day. He'd been dying to tell her he loved her and he didn't want her to scare him like that again. He'd been dying to get her to tell him who the attempted murderer was so he could turn him in before he had to kill him.

But as he stood before her room door, all he could think of was how unfaithful she had been to him. His blood began to boil and his mind reeled as he dramatically envisioned her in different positions with some man he made up in his mind. He closed his eyes, trying to block out the visions, but they were even clearer. He heard those moans and groans that he loved to hear when they _used to_ make love. He imagined her using those moans and groans with someone else. He didn't know who it was. Maybe it was that nigga Jimmy from college. He was always trying to make a pass at her. She didn't like him though, or at least he thought she didn't. He wasn't so sure now.

Or maybe it was Clyde, one of her co-workers. He was always so extra friendly with her. Anton hated that. But nah…Clyde was so dorky. It couldn't be him.

He sighed lowly and opened his eyes to rid the thoughts, or at least _try_ to. He was reluctant, but he finally pushed the door open and walked inside. Looking around, he noticed it was just he and his wife.

Speaking of her, she was staring dead at him with the softest eyes he'd ever seen. It reminded him of the first time they admitted their love to one another. That was _way_ back when.

Despite how dirty she felt, she forced a small smile on her face. He forced one too.

"Well hello." She greeted calmly. Her smooth tone made him smile a little more. He walked over to her and kissed her forehead before pulling back quickly.

"I'm glad you're okay, babe."

She nodded. "I'm fine." Her smile turned upside down. "Where have you been? I've been dying to see you."

The left corner of his mouth twitched as he fought the urge to say something smart.

"Just…y'know, running a few errands for my boss." He lied. He was avoiding her, mainly because he was afraid of what he might say.

She didn't catch on to his lie, so she smiled again. "Oh okay."

"You talk to Stacia?" He asked as he took his seat in the chair beside her bed.

"Not since I told her to hang with her friends." She admitted. "I want to though. I just feel like…she'll just avoid me."

At that, Anton laughed a little. Tina, confused, eyed him weirdly.

"What?"

He shook his head. "Baby, you need to talk to her."

She squinted her eyes, still confused. "Why?"

He stared at her as she stared back. His mind reeled again as he thought about Stacia's conversation with her unconscious mother. The last thing Stacia wanted to do was avoid the woman. "Just…just talk to her."

Tina was a little annoyed at his vagueness. She felt like she was out of the loop or something. He knew something she didn't know.

But then again, she knew something he didn't know. Only difference is that what he doesn't know _could_ hurt him if he finds out.

"If you say so." She concluded. She was about to lean up to sit up a little straighter. Her show was on and she couldn't really see in the position she was in. She made a little noise in pain. Mr. Jackson immediately jumped up at her side.

"Baby, don't move so much." He informed her quickly, making her lay back down. She sighed irritably.

"I can't wait to be independent again." She let out in an exasperated breath. Anton didn't say anything on that note.

Because he most definitely _could_ wait for her to be independent again.

He pushed a button on the bed she was lying on to sit her up the way she wanted to.

"Tell me when to stop." He ordered. She told him when she was almost tilted at a ninety degree angle.

"Thanks honey." She sweetly thanked him and for the first time since he opened those doors, she looked into his eyes. When he looked down at her, he caught her staring into him. He couldn't help but stare back. They just stared at each other, trying to read each other's emotions. They both looked as if they were holding something back. They both wanted to know, but didn't know exactly how to spark up a conversation anymore.

Tina watched as Anton opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. That was all the confirmation she needed. Something was on his mind.

"What's-"

Just as she was about to say something, her door busted wide open. The couple jumped at the suddenness and looked to see who it was.

"Uh…sorry for interrupting whatever it was you all were just doing," A white man with salt and pepper like hair said, with another man with red hair standing behind him. "But we think we know who attacked you Mrs. Jackson."

Her eyes widened. How could they possibly know? She didn't say anything!

"Y-y-you do?" She stuttered nervously. Her husband looked at her, his eyes squinting at her sudden nervous tone.

The white haired man nodded with a blink. "Are you familiar with a man by the name of Jin Taylor?"

Aw hell.

"…Yes…that's my boss." She informed. She looked up at her husband, afraid of his reaction. She didn't know if he knew about her cheating ways, but she felt that he knew _something_.

He didn't even look at her. He just looked to the man, preparing to hear the details.

"Well, I suggest you try working someplace else, because your boss is a prime suspect in this case."

"Where is he now?" She frantically asked, almost cutting him off. Her husband closed his eyes, trying not to get riled up by her weirdness. He tried to deny it. He tried to deny the fact that his wife had been sleeping with her boss. No wonder she had all those promotions. He should've known.

"Well, he was in holding for a few days, but now he's imprisoned. He has a bail, please don't ask why, but it's set pretty high."

She groaned loudly and prepared to scream. This was _not_ good!

"He's _rich_!" She shrieked. "Why does he have _bail_!"

"I…just said not to ask."

"What is the amount?" She asked, ignoring his little smart comment.

"One-hundred thousand dollars."

"That's bullshit!" She yelled and winced as she felt the pain hit her side.

Her husband just looked back and forth at her and the man. He didn't want to talk, or else he'd say something pretty damn foul. He understood her being scared, but he didn't understand why she was acting as if the nigga was unbeatable. If he got out on bail, then he'd just have to be dealt with. Plain and simple.

The man shrugged, not knowing what to say. He turned to look at the red-head man, gesturing him to say something. The red-head just glared at the man. The man shrugged.

"Well…it is what it is. For your sake, just hope he doesn't get out on bail." He said, and ran out the door before her husband could run up to him and whoop his ass.

"Asshole!" She yelled, in hopes of him being able to hear her. How the hell did he just come up in there and inform her that he found the potential killer, and then nonchalantly 'wishes he doesn't get out on bail'? What a jerk.

"Ma'am," She looked at the voice who called her.

"Yes?" She asked in a tired voice. She was done with this bullshit.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure you get the justice you deserve, or my name isn't Jack Flowers."

She didn't know what he was going to do, but she just nodded. "Thank you, sir."

He just nodded and exited out of the room.

She sighed after that…whatever it was and closed her eyes. She knew Jin would get out. He was hella rich. He was two steps under Ed Wuncler and Charles McPhearson. He'd give one-hundred thousand dollars to charity, if his heart was big enough. That man was going to be out of prison in no time.

She inhaled and exhaled repeatedly, on the verge of hyperventilation. She managed to calm down a bit, but still felt extremely uneasy.

Meanwhile, her husband just continued to stare at her, studying her behavior. He loved her dearly, he really did. But he can't help but feel hurt. He didn't need an explanation from her. He knew she slept with her boss. He knew she was unfaithful. He probably should've been thinking more about her safety than anything, but he couldn't help it.

He sighed and casually walked to the door to exit as well.

"I'm going to the cafeteria." He announced. "You want anything?"

She opened her eyes to look at him and felt a major tug at her heart. The look on his face was clear as day. He looked sad. She didn't really know why, but she had a feeling that she was the cause.

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine. Maybe later."

He just nodded and walked out, closing the door behind him.

She was hungry, but food was the last thing on her mind.

Besides, she had another feeling.

She had a feeling he wouldn't return for a while.

* * *

"One call only." The prison guard announced harshly. "You got five minutes."

The Asian tensed up at the man's intimidating tone as he grabbed the phone and made his call. After four rings, the phone picked up.

"Hello?"

He sighed. If he wanted to do this thing, he had to do it right. He only had one more option.

"Hey boy. I don't have long, so listen carefully…"

* * *

After hanging up, he face-palmed and let out a long groan. Shocked was an understatement.

Not only did he receive news from his aunt that his closest cousin ran away, but his uncle was now imprisoned, and he wanted him to bail him out with the money from his safe. He said that the bail was one-hundred thousand dollars.

What he wanted to know was how in the hell did his rich uncle get locked up? What did he do? Why was his bail one-hundred thousand dollars? And more importantly, was he even going to attempt to bail him out?

He thought about it for a second. He wasn't even close to his uncle!

He shook his head angrily. It seemed like the only time people needed him is when they wanted a bailout.

"Shit!" He yelled, thankful that his mom wasn't home to witness his sudden outburst. His family was just full of criminals. He was so done with this stupid shit.

He got up off of the living room sofa and put his shoes on at the front door. He grabbed a coat out of the front closet and let out the door. That nigga he called uncle better give him something in return for his 'good deed'. For real.

* * *

"Hiro do be throwin' the best ones. Me and him need to get acquainted so I can be like 'I know that nigga' when he get famous." Caesar half-joked. He won't no gold digger or nothin' like that…but still…

Right then, the crew decided to just take a stroll around the neighborhood, just for old time's sake. Once again, Caesar gave Cindy a piggyback ride whereas everyone else kept their feet on the ground.

Huey rolled his eyes. "If we go to another party, I don't want to have to start babysitting again. Ya'll always get high or drunk off your asses."

Riley snickered. "Nigga, I don't smoke. The fuck you talkin?"

Stacia giggled as she pushed his shoulder. "Stop lyin', Riley. You smoke sometimes." Riley shrugged.

"Well who asked you to come? You don't even like parties." Riley went on, ignoring what Stacia said.

Huey rolled his eyes. "I only go to keep you irresponsible niggas in check."

"Hey, I don't do much." Caesar announced. Huey looked at him with a straight face. It didn't take long for Ceez to crack up. "Okay, fine. I do have me a drink or two. But I don't smoke. That shit's unattractive."

"Unless it's spice!" Cindy added in a sing-song tone, causing Riley and Stacia to crack up.

Huey rolled his eyes. "Delinquents." Jazmine just continued to hum as she listened to her iPod. She didn't know what they were talking about.

Caesar snickered. "Hell no. That shit will turn you into a vegetable."

Huey looked at him with an upturned eyebrow. "I thought you just said you don't smoke."

"I don't." He simply said. "My cousin smoked it though and ended up having seizures twice in the same night." He shook his head.

"Don't knock it til' you try it." Stacia told him. Huey snapped his head at her. Caesar and Cindy's mouths dropped. Riley snickered as Stacia blushed from her accidental blurt.

"You smoke, too?" Huey asked, sounding a tad disappointed. "I thought you were smarter than that!"

Cindy laughed loudly. "Nigga, she's still smart! She just knows how to have a good fuckin' time."

Caesar shook his head with a smirk. "Not Staciiiaa!" He dragged out dramatically.

"You don't know what you're missing." She weakly defended, making the crew, minus Huey and Jazmine, laugh.

Riley rolled his eyes with a wide grin. "Man, don't hype that nigga up. Spice good and all, but that shit only leave you high for like thirty minutes. Nigga, if I'm gettin' blazed, I want that shit to last all night!"

Cindy interjected. "All you gotta do is smoke the whole bag, nigga. I'm pretty sure you'll be high as a mu'fuckin' kite."

Riley shook his head. "Tried that shit. Don't work like weed do."

Cindy shrugged.

"I don't care what you say, nigga. Spice is that shit. I ain't never had no damn seizures from smokin'."

Caesar snorted.

"Yeah, but I bet you're short a few brain cells." Huey interjected. Cindy rolled her eyes. He's no fun.

Huey was so bored with this conversation.

"Can we change the subject?"

Just then they spotted the old playground they used to go to all the time. It was just up the street from J. Edgar Hoover elementary, the school they used to go to. Damn, they must've walked further than they thought.

"I forgot this shit even existed." Cindy admitted with a light laugh as Caesar let her walk again.

"Word, I did too." Riley added.

Stacia looked back at everyone. "Ya'll tryna go over there?"

Everyone just shrugged. Jazmine finally stopped humming as she noticed the playground as well.

"OH MY GOSH, I FORGOT ABOUT THIS PLAYGROUND!" The music was filling her ears up so much that she felt the nerve to shout over it as if no one would be able to hear her.

Huey sighed and pulled the earphones out of her ears. She began to protest until she realized how loud she was. She giggled and apologized.

Pretty soon, they all reached the playground. Cindy and Caesar were on the blacktop, Riley and Stacia were sitting on the swings, and Huey and Jazmine were standing by the monkey bars.

Jazmine wrapped her earphones around her iPod and placed it into her jacket pocket. She zipped it up as she began to climb on the highest monkey bar. Standing a good few feet away, Huey watched his energetic girlfriend and shook his head.

She rolled her body so that her waist was touching the top of the bar, and did a front flip before landing on the ground. Her back arched and her hands were up in the air like a gymnast. She smiled, showing her perfectly straightened teeth.

"Ta daa!" She took a bow as her boyfriend smirked and clapped for her.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you! You're far too kind!" She laughed as Huey groaned at her reciting Jay-Z's Thank You song. She awed at him and hugged him tightly, pressing her head against his chest.

"You're so cute when you're annoyed." She cooed as she loosened her grip a little. She shivered as she felt the wind hit her neck. How stupid of her to wear her hair up in a bun. She felt him hug her back, and immediately felt warmth. It felt so good to be in his arms.

"Whatever." She heard him say softly. She giggled and looked up at him with a cheeky grin as she caught him blushing a little. He looked down at her, trying not to smile, but failed miserably. She laughed and pinched his cheeks.

"Such a cutie!" She said in an overly dramatic tone. He rolled his eyes, but smiled nonetheless. He moved his face away from her hands.

"Yeah, yeah."

They pulled away from each other and relocated to the steps at the end of the jungle gym. They took a seat and looked around in comfortable silence. Jazmine almost immediately rested her head on his shoulder as she looked forward, watching Cindy and Caesar dancing from afar.

They were silent for a long while. Although they could hear their friends playing around in the short distance, it was very peaceful. It sort of reminded them of the hill. It took a minute for either of them to notice that the sky was getting to be a little dimmer.

"I can't wait for our date." Jazmine started up, lifting her head and breaking the silence. "Y'know that new movie releases this Saturday, right?"

"What new movie?" He questioned as he picked up a stick and trailed it in the dirt mindlessly. Jazmine looked up towards the sky and leant back, propping on her elbows.

"Oh y'know, that movie with the boy that likes the girl, but doesn't want the girl to know he likes her because she's too naïve and he feels he shouldn't like naïve girls because he's too logical and rational, but ends up going with the girl in the end because he knows his feelings won't go away. I forgot what the movie's called."

Huey shrugged. "Never heard of it, but the storyline sounds familiar."

"Doesn't it?" Jaz added, scrunching her face up in thought. "I tried to think of where I've heard it from, but nothing rings a bell."

Huey shrugged again as he threw down the stick and rubbed his hands together.

"Whatever. Maybe we saw it in an old movie once."

Jazmine shrugged too. Maybe they did.

"I'll take you to see it though." He offered. Jazmine squealed and sat up.

"Really? It's doesn't even sound like a movie you'd be interested in." She stated matter-of-factly.

He sighed with a slight eye roll. "Yeah well, I guess I could make a few sacrifices to keep you happy."

She blushed harshly as she placed her dainty hands on both sides of his face and planted a soft kiss on his lips. She pulled back with the most beautiful smile Huey's ever seen. He smirked, realizing that only he could cause her to do so.

"Hmm. You're so sweet to me." She noted. "I wonder why." She looked up at him with a slight grin. "Could it be because you want to get all up _in_ the drawls?"

He gave her a wide eyed expression and she pulled her lips in, stifling her laughter. He stared at her for a good minute, red all over his face.

"…What?" Although his face was very expressive, his tone remained calm.

"Oh, so you don't want it?" She challenged.

"Of course I do…wait, that's not what I meant!" He answered a little too soon and groaned as he realized his mistake. Jazmine couldn't help herself. She loved to tease him. Her incessant giggling turned into full blown laughter. She bent over, holding her stomach.

"You're ridiculous." He muttered as he shook his head, his cheeks turning a tinted red. He hated to be laughed at.

"Aww. Baby, I'm sowwy." She fake-apologized to him as she leant her head against him, still laughing. He rolled his eyes and turned the other direction.

"Don't be mad, Huey. I'm sorry." She begged, smiling cutely.

He shook his head again. "Yeah, whatever."

Her smile widened. "So you forgive me?"

"No."

She shrugged.

"You're not mad."

Huey stared at her blankly. He just loved it when she told him how he was or wasn't feeling.

Not.

"Jazmine, please stop talking."

She frowned.

"Fine." She pouted softly. Huey was a real jerk sometimes. She was playing. She didn't mean to upset him. She was just acting like she normally did when she was around him. Why was he feeling some type of way?

Damn. He must really hate being laughed at.

Huey stood up slowly and stretched out wide. Jazmine glanced up at him once and turned the other way. She heard him sigh, but ignored him. They didn't say anything for a minute. She then began playing in the dirt with a thin twig. He sighed again.

"We should get going. It's getting dark." He insisted. She didn't even look up.

"It's getting there, it's not dark yet." She stubbornly snapped back. She continued trailing the twig in the dirt as if she was trying to forget Huey was even standing there. That kind of pissed him off a little bit.

Huey rolled his eyes at her childish behavior. "Jazmine. Put down the stick. You know your parents would trip if you're not home before 9:30."

She scoffed. "And since when do you care about what my parents think? You disrespect them half the time." She continued to trail the stick. He just stared at her blankly.

"Jazmine…" He called to her. She ignored him. "Jazmine, what's the problem?" He asked as he took his seat beside her again. She sighed irritably and scooted away from him a bit. Her body language said it all.

"Why are you mad at me?"

She scoffed again. "Guess, Mr. Know-it-all."

He rolled his eyes. "You're still mad because I asked you to stop talking?" She didn't respond. "Jazmine, I don't even know why you took me seriously." She still didn't respond. He watched her as she huffed and puffed harshly, confirming that she was indeed mad.

He sighed hard and closed his eyes. Her drama-filled ass really bothered him sometimes. Well, time to make up.

He scooted close to her. She wanted to scoot over more, but she didn't have any room, so she just kept looking in the opposite direction. She gasped, however, when she felt her boyfriend place soft butterfly kisses on the side of her neck. She tried so hard to keep a straight face, but as she felt his lips trace the underside of her ear, she sighed lightly.

He smirked as he noticed it and lovingly wrapped his arms around her waist from the back. Not being able to resist his charm, she smiled lightly and nestled deeper into his arms. He smiled too.

Success.

"I'm sorry, baby." He softly apologized, his lips right next to her right ear. "I didn't mean for you to get upset."

She blushed deep when she heard him call her by an affectionate title, and smiled wider. She felt that giddiness again. The one she felt when they first admitted their love for one another. She turned her head slightly to look up at him.

"I know." She gave him a quick kiss and looked into his eyes. "I love you, Huey. And I'm sorry for acting like such a drama queen."

He smiled back and stared into her jade pools. "It's okay. And I love you, too."

More than satisfied with his answer, she turned around to lean back into him again.

"Why can't I stay mad at you?" She seriously asked.

"Why are you so dramatic?" He countered, just as serious. She rolled her eyes.

"Even when you're being a smart-alec, I can't help but love you. It's kind of annoying." She admitted, laughing a little. He shrugged.

"Love does that to a person, I guess." He answered. "Besides, it was a petty argument. If you stay mad at something like that for long, that's kind of pathetic."

She punched his arm lightly as he snorted.

She smiled again and looked up at the evening sky.

"I could stay like this forever." She whispered.

Huey nodded in agreement. "Yeah." He almost forgot they had to go. "We can't though."

Jazmine's smile faded as she awoke from dreamland and entered reality. She sighed. "I know."

"Yeah, but it's okay." He says, trying to boost her mood a bit. "Saturday we'll be alone. Granddad's going out on another date with yet another young woman," He rolled his eyes at the thought as Jazmine giggled, "Riley and Stacia will probably go out somewhere since she's doing better, and Cindy and Caesar are going to do their own thing, I'm pretty sure of it."

Jazmine giggled again. They knew the two were feeling each other. It was cute.

To Jazmine, at least.

"So that means…after the date, we'll have the house to ourselves." He whispered in her ear, purposely sending a shiver down her spine.

Just payback for what she did to him earlier at her house.

She closed her eyes, trying to control her emotions.

"C-can't say I'm not looking forward to that." She replied in a hazy tone, definitely affected by her man's voice.

He smirked and unwrapped his arms from around her. She pouted, but took his hand he offered her and stood up anyways. She had her right arm around his back as he had his left one around her shoulders. They walked over to the rest of the crew. Riley and Stacia were sitting in the same swing, Stacia on Riley's lap. Riley whispered in Stacia's ear as she giggled girlishly. Jazmine smiled at their cuteness, but Huey shook his head. They were probably going to get it in later.

"Alright, it's time to go." Huey announced to the couple. Riley groaned irritably as Stacia whined.

"Aww, already?"

"Afraid so."

"Damn." Riley cursed. Stacia hopped off his lap slowly, followed by him hopping off the swing and stretching. "Welp, time for me to get some pussaayy-OW!"

Stacia smacked the back of his head pretty hard, making Jazmine bend over in laughter. Huey shook his head at his dumb brother.

"Shut up fool!" She was blushing madly at his outburst.

Riley snickered, holding his head. "Damn bay, you hit too hard."

"Serves you right." She sassed. Just then, Cindy and Caesar walked over.

"What's goin' on?" Cindy inquired as she noticed everyone standing up in one area.

"Time to go." Jazmine announced.

Caesar sighed. "Aww man! We wanted to have a dancing contest. I want a rematch with you, Jaz."

Jazmine almost cracked up at that. "Let's face it Caesar, I'm a natural."

Caesar scoffed. "Girl, you know I'm the King!"

Everyone just stared at him like he was crazy.

"…What?"

Then everyone looked at each other and turned on their heels.

"…Yeeaaahhh, let's go." Cindy suggested and walked off with the crew, leaving Caesar standing there.

"…Aye! What's that supposed to mean?" He yelled, powerwalking to catch up.

* * *

**Dana TooFly Jefferson**

_I've cut people off in the past, so I have no problem doing so now. If I haven't known you long and you actin' funny, don't expect me to get all excited when I see you, for real. If I make more friends this year, I hope they're dudes. Girls are REAL silly for no reason. I'm just ready to get this job, and go back to school. #AndThatsReal_

Like Comment_ 12 minutes ago_

Riley rolled his eyes at the Facebook status on the Newsfeed. Niggas always puttin' their lives out there for the world to see. And why the fuck niggas using the pound sign? This ain't Twitter!

He just logged out and turned the computer off. This was the second night Granddad let Riley stay with Stacia at her crib. He was beginning to think that the old nigga was trippin'. He shrugged it off though. He wanted to be with his boo anyways.

"Baby." He called her as he stood up. She was sitting on her bed removing her nail polish from her fingernails.

"Hmm?" She was so focused on her nails, she didn't look up.

"You wanna stop by my place for the night?" He asked. She looked at him funny.

"That's cool, but I thought you'd want to be alone with me."

He rolled his eyes. "Of course I do. But Granddad got some bangin' leftovers in the fridge and…babe, you just got noodles."

She giggled at his confession. She placed her nail polish remover and the cotton ball on her dresser before standing up. "Mr. Freeman allowed you to come over here a second night. I think that's something you should treasure."

He nodded. "True. But a nigga hungry, bay. You gotta understand."

She giggled at his dramatics and rolled her eyes.

"Boy, you ain't gon' die."

He sighed.

"Besides," She began, seductively walking closer to him. "We wouldn't be alone if we go to your crib. And you know what that means, right?" He just stared at her with a slight smirk at her sexiness.

"No, what?" He played dumb, his voice a little raspy.

She smirked and brought her small, delicate hands under his shirt to rub his pecks. He lightly bit his lip at the feel.

She brought her lips to his ear and whispered something that caused his eyes to widen and something to rise in his pants.

"…Oh shit…" He breathed and quickly grabbed her by the hips, pinning her down on the bed. She giggled at his eagerness.

"Oh, but what about Granddad's food?" She asked jokingly. He smirked again.

"Fuck that food. We got noodles."

* * *

"You're free to go." One very disappointed cop announced to the Korean man who, in turn, plastered an evil grin on his features.

He didn't say a word. He just walked out, leaving inmates screaming and shouting about 'how good his ass would've been' and whatnot. He tried not to cringe at what he heard as he neared closer and closer to freedom. He was more than ecstatic to find his oddly proportioned nephew standing there waiting on him.

"You did good, boy." He pleasantly stated after sighing. Well, arresting him was a little mishap, but he'd be all the more prepared for what he was about to do next.

Brian rolled his eyes hard and just marched out of the place, his uncle following behind.

Jin really could care less about Brian's attitude. All he wanted the boy to do was bail him out. He just asked him to go into his safe, he told him the number and told him where he was. So now that he was out, the boy wasn't really needed anymore.

Well…he did need a ride home.

"Drop me off at my house and then you can do whatever you want."

He heard the boy scoff.

"Whatever." He snarled. Jin just stared at him, unfazed. He didn't understand why the boy was mad, really. But he didn't really care to dwell on that. He had more important things to worry about.

As the boy started up the car, Jin nodded to himself, feeling real good. Things were working in his favor. He had all the right equipment back home. He didn't think he needed to use it, before the bitch told on him, but now it was deemed necessary.

Next step…find Tina Jackson and do away with her.

Then, track down Crystal.

These bitches clearly didn't know who they were messing with.

* * *

Every time was different with her. Every…single…time.

And every time they did it, damnit, it just felt so right!

Riley rolled off of his woman and positioned himself beside her. She cooed softly as she rubbed his forearm and rested her head on his shoulder.

They were _spent_.

They just spent the past two hours making love. This time, Stacia went buck wild, surprising the hell out of Riley. She did some things that were, for the public, better left unsaid.

Maybe being away from each other for so long did that to her. Hell, if that was the case, she should stay away from him a whole week and a half and see how that works out for them.

He couldn't believe she wore him out like that, though. He was literally fighting the fluttering of his eyelids. It was usually the other way around, but this girl done tapped into her inner freak and let loose.

"That…it was…you were…aw shit…" She laughed as she listened to him trying to describe how she just made him feel.

"That good, huh?"

"Hell yeah!" He exclaimed through his exhaustion. "You killed that shit."

She giggled into his shoulder. "You make it sound like I hit you with a dope rhyme or something."

He sighed blissfully. "I don't even know what else to say about you, girl. And when you hit them splits! Shit!"

She laughed and blushed at his comments. "Well your stroke game was perfect, boo. Don't give me all the credit."

"I got to. You ain't never done what you did before. I ain't even know you was holdin' back."

She shrugged. "Well, what you want me to say?"

He shook his head. "I don't even know. You got my nerves goin' haywire right now."

She laughed. "You still hungry?"

He scoffed. "Pssh, I'm too fuckin' tired to be thinkin' about food right now."

She laughed and pulled the cover up over their bodies. They remained quiet, nearly falling asleep. If it weren't for that loud ass shrill from the hallway, maybe niggas could've gone to sleep sooner.

"Who the fuck callin' yo' house at midnight?" Riley snapped, sounding aggravated.

Stacia growled in frustration and stood up. She didn't even attempt to cover herself as she walked to the door.

"Aw shit now." She heard her boyfriend whisper as he eyed her nude form. Despite her frustration, she glanced back at him and winked before disappearing into the hallway to pick up the phone.

"Hello?" She flatly answered.

"_Umm, yeah…is there a Tina Jackson here? My name is Crystal and I called here a few days ago, but I've never gotten a call back."_

Stacia's eyebrows furrowed. "Well, Tina Jackson's my mother, but she's at the Woodcrest Hospital until…well, we actually don't know when she's being released. I'll tell her you called though."

"_What…room does she stay in_?" The woman, Crystal hesitantly asked. Her tone sounded urgent, so Stacia couldn't help but to ask.

"Is there something you're not telling me that I probably need to know about my mother?" She didn't mean to sound so straight-forward, but she was a little annoyed. Who the hell _was_ this woman?

Crystal sighed. "_I don't know about your mother's life," _She lied. _"But I know who attacked her, and I've been trying to reach her for the longest."_

Wait.

"…You know who attacked my mom?" She asked incredulously.

"_Yes. I just want to speak with her, if that's alright with you._"

Stacia had to think about it. There were some pretty messed up people she had to deal with in her past life, Briana being one of them. She wasn't too big on trusting people she didn't know.

But on second thought, this woman cared enough to call, leave a message, and call again to wonder why she hadn't received a call back. So she can't be all bad.

Stacia sighed. She couldn't believe she was doing this, but…

"It's room 305."

She did it.

She heard the woman sigh in relief. "_Thank you so much. How's she doing by the way?_"

"She's fine. She's just recovering."

"_That's good to hear_."

"Yeah." Stacia went on. She remembered hearing Crystal saying something like 'I know you don't like me' or something along those lines in the last voice message. "Did you have some sort of problem with my mom?"

There was silence on the other end. Stacia had to wonder if the woman was still there.

"Hello?"

"_No, I'm here. It's just,_" Crystal began, trailing off a bit. "_We just don't click. She's cool, I guess, but she's not the type of person I'd hang with…no offense_."

"None taken." Stacia wasn't really pleased with the answer she got. She felt like there was something more to that story. She could tell Crystal was choosing her words carefully. She shrugged. She'd just have to ask her mom.

"Well, thanks for calling and informing me about the attacker."

"No problem. Thanks for informing me about your mother's safety."

"You're welcome."

"Alright, goodnight sweetie."

"Goodnight."

_Click._

Well. That was kind of weird, but she was glad that someone other than her family or friends wanted to look out for her mom. It was sweet. She didn't know people even knew about what happened to her mom.

She sighed as she walked back to her room to find Riley passed out. She stifled her laughter as she carefully climbed back into bed, laying her head on his chest. The sound of his heartbeat calmed her. It always did.

Naturally, he embraced her. She smiled and kissed his chest before snuggling into him even more. Pretty soon, she was knocked out, too.

* * *

"Hell yeah!" Crystal yelled. She knew where the Woodcrest Hospital was. She was going to finally get the chance to talk to Mrs. Jackson about what's been going on.

She ran to her closet and grabbed a green long sleeved shirt, navy blue skinny jeans and a pair of green chucks that she's only worn twice in her entire life. She quickly changed out of her night clothes and into the clothes she'd just picked out. She threw on a chocolate brown coat, grabbed her keys and sprinted out the door.

It was about that time.

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SOMEONE PAID FOR HIS BAIL!" Bellowed a very angry Jack Flowers. "You MUST want me to kick you in the nuts!"

Another detective agent looked at him warily and shook his head. "No…?" he began. "Don't look at me, I didn't set the bail."

"Goddamnit!" He yelled and spun around in anger. "You know what this means?"

"…He…got out on bail?"

"No! Well…yes, but that's not the point!" He shouted again. "Mrs. Jackson's in danger, and we've got to do something."

"Ah Jack, there you are." The Director walked in the room behind him out of nowhere. Jack turned around and nearly face-palmed himself. This dude popped up at the wrong time. He already knew what he was about to say.

"We just received a phone call from the Maximum Prison in Aberdeen…Jin Taylor's bail has been paid." He responded in his Director-y tone. Jack frowned deep.

"I know that, Director. We've got to do something about that."

"We can't. It's against our governmental policies."

Jack stared at the man in disbelief.

"What? To _help _people?"

"…Well…yes." He admitted nonchalantly. "Now, you've done a fine job with this case, Jack. It's time to go, so have a good weekend, and uh…no going rouge again. Seriously, I could have you suspended for that."

Jack scoffed and turned his back. The Director shrugged and left the room. As soon as his footsteps were unheard of, Jack sighed.

"I guess I'm going rouge again."

The other detective gasped. "No, Jack! Did you not just hear what he said?"

"I know what he said!"

"…You could get suspended." He tried saving his ass once more, but Jack's mind was already made up.

"Suspended Detective Luke, not fired."

With that, Agent Jack Flowers walked out of the room, leaving Agent Luke Mathers standing there stupefied.

* * *

Jin groaned as he jumped out of his nephew's ride and into the house. He should've been by the hospital. Yes, he knew which hospital Tina stayed in. Where else would she go? She lived in Woodcrest, Maryland, and the Woodcrest Hospital was the only one available to the Woodcrest residents.

He quickly ran upstairs to freshen up. He didn't even bother taking a shower, which he probably should've done, but he was on a mission. Fuck that. He was about to get this over with.

Good thing the hospital was only a fifteen minute drive. He'd make it a ten minute one, though. Possibly five.

He had no time to waste.

* * *

Crystal stopped at the stop sign, looked both ways, and made a left. She was up the road from her destination. She was so amped. She'd been waiting to do this for a minute now. If the Jacksons didn't know anything, she sure as hell had the information.

She finally saw the gigantic building and grinned happily as she turned into the parking lot. Yes!

She pulled up closer to the front and put her car in park. She leant back in her seat and closed her eyes.

It was time.

She took a few breaths, mentally pumped her self to get to it, and hopped out. She damn near ran to the front hospital doors, but couldn't seem to make it inside.

Probably because someone had just hit her upside the head with a two-by-four.

Damn.

* * *

Jin smiled darkly, and shook his head.

"Stupid bitch." He muttered as he picked her limp body up off the ground and laid her down behind the bushes. She wasn't dead, but she was knocked the hell out. By the time she'd wake up, he would be through with his first plan. She'd be dealt with later.

He wiped his hands off and walked back to his car to get a few more things. He needed to be on stealth mode for this shit.

He opened the passenger's side and stuffed some dangerous looking instruments in his coat pockets. He opened the back door to retrieve a pair of plastic gloves. He stuffed those in his pockets too before closing both car doors.

If he wanted to do away with Mrs. Jackson, he had to do it right. He chuckled evilly as he neared closer and closer to the front doors of the hospital.

Not at all noticing a black 2011 Chevy Impala parked a good distance away from him…

Watching his every move.

* * *

*Sigh* That nigga steady sloppy lol. Fix your shit and cover yo' tracks if you wanna be a successful killer nigga. I ain't about that life, and even_ I_ know that!

Damn, Crystal! You was right there! Parked in the front and everything, smh.

You don't have to say it, because I know. Jazmine is soooooo annoying sometimes lol. Dramatic ass. I had to do it lol.

Briana and Diablo? What's the deal with them, right? You'll find out!

Oh, and there will be more Ceez and Cindy soon. And Cindy hangin' with her folks, too. :)

Btw, if ya don't know, the song Jaz was listening to is _At Your Best (You Are Love)_, Aaliyah's version. Ya'll know it was originally done by the Isley Brothers! :)

I'm halfway through chapter 25. Ya girl tryna update quickly, ya heard me? :)

Until next time, peace, love and re-VIEEWWWWW!

-_-, yes I'm corny.


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